Davis Cup: Myneni, Ramanathan give a 2-0 lead for India over South Korea

India took on South Korea in the second round of Asia/Oceania Group I, for a place in the World Group Playoffs. Chandigarh played host to this tie and prepared grass courts as per the wishes of the non-playing captain of India, Mr.Anand Amritraj. The rain had lashed Chandigarh the previous day, leaving courts quite soggy. The muggy weather only added to the challenges faced by both the teams.

In a day where the conditions were tough and trying, Saketh Myneni and Ramkumar Ramanathan posted wins over Seong Chan Hong and Yong-Kyu Lim respectively to give India a 2-0 lead. In both the matches, the Koreans had conceded when the Indians were one game away from winning the rubber. Ramanathan led 6-3, 2-6, 6-3, 6-5 and was serving for the match, when a cramp left Hong immobile, forcing him to forfeit the match following which he was carried off the court. Saketh Myneni was also serving for the match against Yong-Kyu Lim when the Korean threw in the towel.Myneni won 6-1, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3, *5-2 (Ret)

Ramanathan - Hong

In the first rubber which lasted 2 hours and 56 minutes, Ramanathan made a winning debut and gave India 1-0 lead over Korea. In the first set at 3-3, Ramanathan broke Hong with an inside out forehand winner and gained a 4-3 lead. In the game that followed, Ramanathan managed to hold his serve to gain a 5-3 lead, despite committing four double faults in the same game. He tried to do too much with his second serve and yielded nine double faults throughout the match. He broke again at 5-3 to win the first set 6-3.

In the second set, Ramanathan was broken in the first and fifth game giving a 5-1 lead to Hong. Hong wasted no time and took the set 6-2 in 26 minutes.In the third set, Ramanathan broke in the fourth game to lead 3-1 and went on to win the set 6-3. 

In the fourth set, Ramanathan broke early and consolidated the break to lead 2-0. A sluggish game from Ramanathan in the fourth game leveled the set at 2-2. In the following two games, both the players traded breaks and the set was again level at 3-3.At 5-5, Ramkumar broke again with a volley to serve for the match at 6-5.At 15-15in the next game, Hong fell to the ground due to cramps and was forced to concede the match.

Ramanathan was sluggish in his movements toward the net and Hong took advantage of that fact several times in the match with drop shots and volleys. Hong adapted better to the court conditions but Ramanathan managed to hold on, in the crucial points. Ramanathan served well as the match went on and thus was the crucial factor in his victory.

Myneni Vs Lim

Myneni had a confident start in the next rubber against Yong-Kyu Lim and blazed through the first set in 21 minutes and won it 6-1.In the second set, Lim got accustomed to the conditions and managed to hold his service games. At 3-4, Myneni committed four double faults, gifting his service game to Lim, who took a 5-3 lead. The momentum shifted a bit and Lim took the second set 6-3. Myneni was broken to love in the first game of the third set and was trailing 0-2 .With three aces, he managed to hold at 2-1 and broke Lim in the next game to level it at 2-2. At 4-3, Myneni tried hard to break again but Lim saved three break points to hold his serve.At 5-4, Lim double faulted to give the third set to Myneni.

The game slowed down as the players progressed to the fourth set, owing to the sapping humid conditions. At 2-2, Myneni started cramping and was broken, giving a 3-2 lead to Lim. From then on, Myneni was receiving treatments frequently and was limping throughout the fourth set. In the last point of the fourth set, Myneni ran forward to get a drop shot, thus aggravating his cramp. He was writhing in pain and was close to tears. The Indian team was providing treatments to him and their body language indicated that they were about to throw in the towel.

A limping Myneni came to play the decider and managed to break the first game.Lim, on the other hand, did not have enough gas and was struggling to move on the court.In the fifth game, Myneni broke again to take a 4-1 lead and both players received prolonged breaks and medical treatments.When Myneni was serving for the match at 5-2, 15-15 Lim fell flat on his back and again, he too was forced to concede the match.

Leander Paes and Rohan Bopanna will take on Hong Chung and Yunseong Chung in the doubles rubber tomorrow.