ISLAMABAD: The Indian tennis team finally made it to Islamabad on Monday, February 3–4, to play the crucial Davis Cup Group I match against Pakistan at the Sports Complex Grass Court. This came after months of doubt and hesitancy, according to The News.
The article claims that the All-Indian Tennis Association (AITA) made every effort to deny Pakistan the privilege to host. In order to move the match to a neutral location, it had first petitioned the Independent Tribunal’s Chair and then the Davis Cup Committee.
Nevertheless, their attempts were in futile, and they were left with little choice but to either fly to Pakistan to play the tie or risk having their tie forfeited and fined by the International Tennis Federation (ITF).
The Indian team ultimately made the decision to go to Pakistan out of fear of the fine and potential relegation, and they landed in the nation’s capital late on Sunday night.
This is the first time, according to The News, that Pakistan has twice in a few months overcome India’s position in an international arena.
The Chair of the Independent Tribunal then took a turn to uphold the DCC/PTF stand and dismiss AITA objections entirely, after the DCC had rejected India’s concern and awarded Pakistan the tie.
Five players, two physios, a manager, a coordinator, a coach, and a manager make up the visiting team. The Indian team was greeted by Pakistan Tennis Federation (PTF) Secretary Col (retd) Gul Rehman and other federation representatives upon their arrival in Pakistan.
