Tennis
Sumit Nagal refuses national duty again, Mukund returns to Davis Cup team
Indian Davis Cup team for the tie against Togo was announced with Sasikumar Mukund returning to the team.
Sumit Nagal (Photo Credits: Getty)
Top-ranked Indian singles player Sumit Nagal refused to play in the Davis Cup yet again while Sasikumar Mukul made a comeback to the national squad after his suspension was revoked by the AITA executive committee on Friday.
The squad named for the clash against Togo features the next highest-ranked singles players in Mukund Sasikumar (368), Ramkumar Ramanathan (393), Karan Singh (473), and doubles No. 3 and 4 N Sriram Balaji (65), and Rithvik Bollipalli (72) respectively.
“Nagal has not responded to any email sent by AITA regarding his availability for the tie,” AITA secretary general Anil Dhupar said. “He has missed Davis Cup ties in the past as well, and it appears he does not wish to play for the country.”
Nagal along with Sasikumar Mukund and Yuki Bhambri had withdrawn from India's previous Davis Cup tie against Sweden leading to an uproar. Nagal had cited physical issues for his withdrawal but AITA alleged that he demanded money to turn up for the Davis Cup tie.
He had also refused to travel to Islamabad for the contest against Pakistan in January-February, saying the grass courts do not suit his style of play.
Mukund, who has also in the past refused to play Davis Cup ties and had been reprimanded for it by AITA, however, returns to the fold.
“Mukund’s suspension has been revoked by the committee,” Dhupar said.
India has not fielded their strongest possible squads for the last few Davis Cup ties but against Togo, which has only one player ranked in the ATP charts (Thomas Setodji at 1259), it should not have too much of an impact.
