It was heart-break for India on the second day of the Davis Cup World Group first round clash in Novi Sad on Saturday. Rohan Bopanna and Somdev Devvarman battled bravely against a hostile home crowd that jeered their every move to go down 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 6-7 (12-10) to the Serbian pairing of Ilja Bozoljac and Nenad Zimonjic in the doubles encounter. The defending champions now lead the tie 2-1. The match was a see-saw affair. Bopanna and Somdev, coming off an exhausting opening day's effort, came through the gates strongly. The second and third sets belonged to the Serbians in which doubles ace Zimonjic held sway. The Indians then shot ahead to a 4-1 lead in the fourth set, but failed to keep the good run going. Somdev was broken in the seventh game. The teams then pushed the set to tie-break even as the match was repeatedly interrupted by boisterous crown behavior. The Indians had three set-points in the breaker, but it was the Serbians who closed out on their third match-point after 3 hours and 12 minutes of play.
Earlier on Friday, Somdev ran a soul-stirring three-hour marathon in a straight sets win over fancied Serb Janko Tipsarevic. It was Somdev's heart though that took him past the finish line. The super-fit Indian, ranked 93, beat Tipsarevic, 45 in the rankings, 7-5, 7-5, 7-6 (7-3) to help his team level scores at the end of Day One. Earlier, Viktor Troicki, the Serbian No. 1 in the absence of Novak Djokovic, put out birthday boy Rohan Bopanna 6-3, 6-3, 5-7, 3-6, 6-3.
Somdev typically pegged his win on team work. "Rohan's heart-breaking loss gave the team momentum and belief," he said matter-of-factly. "Coming into this tie, Serbia were the favourites to win. Nobody expected Rohan to put up a fight. The way he fought motivated the team, it helped me especially when I was down in all the three sets. Every single person on the bench thought I could win today. I served well, kept fighting and always believed I could win the match. For the morale of the team this result is huge. We definitely believe we can win this tie now."
India's non-playing captain SP Misra refused to give anything away. "I would've been delighted with 2-0," he said smiling, "Rohan came very close to making that happen. Playing the Davis Cup champions in their backyard and being one-all on day one is satisfactory."
In the past, Somdev has been a reluctant customer when trading strokes. In the Serbian City on Friday he was a whole different competitor, stepping in and taking his chances. He came back from 1-4, 2-5 and 3-5 in all three sets to orchestrate a win in which he had 26 winners, eight aces and 51 unforced errors as against the Serbian's 81 unforced errors.
Two points - in the second and third games of the third set - best showcased Somdev's effort. On the Serbian's serve in the second game, the Indian seemed to be moving quicker than a police vehicle in a highway chase. After exchanging groundstrokes he floated four lobs the last of which Tipsarevic slammed wide. In the next game, Somdev continued with his chase and punch routine before coming from nowhere to roll a down-the-line winner that drew applause from his opponent. Stunned into silence, the crowd slowly joined in the cheering.
In the tie-break, Somdev trailed 1-3. It wasn't an unfamiliar position for the Indian and he simply picked up the baton. A forehand on the run helped him level at 3-3. He then took the fight to the Serbian, winning the next four points to put his team on the scoreboard. "I have played Tipsarevic a few times," Somdev said. "I kinda know what to expect. Having said that, it is one thing to have a plan and another thing to be able to execute it. I did well in both departments."
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