Mahesh Bhupathi's success as India's Davis Cup captain depends on these unanswered questions

“Mahesh Bhupathi will certainly have challenges like all new captains and he will have to handle them as he thinks best. His style of management will surely be different from mine and without sounding too cocky, he’ll have a hard act to follow, considering the rapport I have with the team.” Anand Amritraj’s words sum up the All India Tennis Association’s choice in seeking out a viable replacement for him as the captain of the Indian Davis Cup team.

The dichotomous stability of Amritraj’s tenure did not go well with the AITA towards the end, but it worked well in favour of the Indian team. Under his lead, the squad not only played as a collective unit, but their performances also exceeded expectations as they successively made it to the World Group Play-offs in the last three years, despite not having a solid team composition, rankings-wise.

Mahesh Bhupathi: Making the transition from player to captain

What separated Amritraj from his predecessor, SP Misra, who was brought down by the team’s rebellion against him, was that he gave each of his players room to do his best. The cordiality that he had with each team member was also supported by his steadfast objectivity in all these years that he had been with the squad. Ipso facto, the latter will also be the demarcating factor between Amritraj and his successor, Bhupathi.

A veteran of 35 Davis Cup ties, the last played as recently as 2011, Bhupathi hasn’t been that far removed from the professional Tour. He has played with most – read Rohan Bopanna, Saketh Myneni and Leander Paes – of the current team members. And while that in itself should be a great boost to the team morale in having a former teammate takeover as the coach, juxtaposed with the controversial precedents set, the AITA’s decision seems to be startling than offering a workable prospect in its wholesome.

Incidentally, with the changes to be made to the team post their Asia/Oceania Group I tie against New Zealand, to be held at home from February 3 to 5, the consequence of the AITA’s decision won’t be felt until India’s second match, either in the Group I second round or in the Group I Play-offs, in April, depending on the first round result.

The AITA flip-flop

This aspect, then, extends to both Bhupathi commencing his role as the team’s skipper and Bopanna trying to make his way back into the squad after the AITA’s opting against selecting him for the tie against New Zealand, in spite of his readiness to do so. “Picking Rohan blocks a place for a third singles player that we wanted to have in the squad. Also Leander and Saketh were brilliant against Spain. But whenever Leander and Rohan have played together, they have not done well. Take Czech Republic tie as an example,” justified Misra, now an AITA selector.

The rationale sounds – and is – credible, since Bopanna has had been emphasising the same about his partnering with Paes. However, while before, the AITA seemed to be forever inclined to keep their partnership going, even at the Rio Games, this seems to be quite a turnaround – one that doesn’t ring the right chords, at that.

The derivation for this back-pedalling by the AITA can then be attributed to Bopanna skipping India’s World Group Play-off tie in September, in Spain. Though Bopanna had intimated to the AITA that he was forced to miss the tie because of his knee injury flaring up and the AITA had accepted his reason, his absence made the tie all the more lopsided than it was, since the outset.

How will the team’s fortunes stack up hereafter?

That the team went on to lose the doubles rubber as well makes for a stark background to evaluate its performance, since doubles has been India’s forte irrespective of its performances in singles. Thus, despite Misra’s claiming that Paes and Myneni did well against the Spanish team of Rafael Nadal and Marc Lopez, it cannot be denied that the Indian duo lacked the finesse that has long come to be associated with the Indians in Davis Cup doubles rubbers.

In fairness, the nascence of Paes and Myneni’s partnership will get further exposure in the team’s tie against the Kiwis. Given that India have a dual advantage over the visitors, both in their team rankings and their head-to-head, there’s certainty that the team will do well.

As a part of his handover, Bhupathi’s stint as the captain will be measured within this platform laid down by Amritraj, limited in grandiose success as it was. The 5-0 whitewash by Spain hurt, but within that drubbing was the obviousness in Spain’s team selection. In sending a full-strength squad to India, which is far lower down the rankings’ rung, was the acknowledgement that the Spaniards weren’t going to be taking India lightly. Bhupathi then has the responsibility to ensure that this steadiness of the team is maintained, and potentially bettered, during his term.

His ambitiousness has given him an incredible opportunity, stepping into an unknown domain as he is, but only time will reveal if Bhupathi is able to balance his aspirations with perspectives – of and for the team – unlike during his playing heydays, when his personal choices overlooked all other factors in his decision-making.