LILLEHAMMER (Norway): India were beaten 0-3 by a far superior Norwegian side as world No. 2 Casper Ruud combined with Viktor Durasovic to win the doubles match and complete the rout in the Davis Cup World Group I tie here on Saturday.
The Indian pair of Yuki Bhambri and Saketh Myneni 3-6, 6-3, 3-6.
After losing both singles on day one, the Yuki-Saketh pair battled it out before losing to the Norwegian duo in an hour and 50 minutes.
On the first day, the two Ramkumar Ramanathan and Prajnesh Gunneswaran had lost their respective singles matches by identical margins of 1-6, 4-6 to Durasovic and Ruud, respectively.
While Roland Garros and US Open runner-up Ruud is a cut above the rest, the Indians couldn’t even tame Durasovic, whose singles ranking is a modest 325 and sits at 224 in the list of doubles.
Ruud, on the other hand, doesn’t even play doubles on the tour. However, as had often been the case, the powerful singles player had an advantage over the doubles specialists.
The Norwegian pair needed a break point each in the first and third set to clinch the rubber.
The Yuki-Saketh couple had enjoyed some success at Challenger level where they reached a few finals, but at a level a few notches higher the pair failed to keep India afloat despite better understanding on paper. , compared to the pair of Ruud and Durasovic.
With Norway taking an unassailable 3-0 lead, the two reverse singles will not be played.
The Indian side were eyeing a heavy defeat after conceding a 0-2 lead to the hosts following Ramkumar’s loss to Durasovic in the second single on Friday night.
Ramkumar, India’s number one singles player, failed to live up to expectations as he suffered a 1-6, 4-6 loss to lower-ranked opponent Durasovic in an hour and 16 minutes.
After Prajnesh Gunneswaran lost to world No. 2 and US Open runner-up Ruud in an expected result in the first singles, it fell to Ramkumar to keep India level by winning the second game.
But it was not to be as Ramkumar, ranked 276th in the world, proved no match for the 325th-ranked Durasovic, who broke the Indian’s serve three times and dispatched 12 aces against three by his opponent at Hakons Hall Hard Court. indoor installation.
Durasovic fired five aces in the first set while breaking Ramkumar’s serve twice. In the first set, Ramkumar could only hold his first serve to make it 1-1, but after that it was Durasovic all the way. Ramkumar also committed two double faults which made things worse for him as Durasovic easily won the first set.
Ramkumar tried to come back in the second set but he failed to hold his second service game to give Durasovic a 2-1 lead. The Indian couldn’t break Durasovic’s serve as the Norwegian fired seven aces. Leading 5-4, Durasovic held his serve to close the match.
Earlier, in the first Friday singles, Ruud was too good for Prajnesh.
Ruud, who finished second at the US Open after dropping to Carlos Alcaraz Monday, reported for national duty four days later and did the work for his team. He beat the 335-ranked Indian 6-1, 6-4 in an hour and two minutes.
After being totally dominated in the first set, Prajnesh upped his game in the second to make it harder for Ruud. While the Indian failed to secure a break point, his most accomplished opponent converted three of the five opportunities he got.
The Indian pair of Yuki Bhambri and Saketh Myneni 3-6, 6-3, 3-6.
After losing both singles on day one, the Yuki-Saketh pair battled it out before losing to the Norwegian duo in an hour and 50 minutes.
On the first day, the two Ramkumar Ramanathan and Prajnesh Gunneswaran had lost their respective singles matches by identical margins of 1-6, 4-6 to Durasovic and Ruud, respectively.
While Roland Garros and US Open runner-up Ruud is a cut above the rest, the Indians couldn’t even tame Durasovic, whose singles ranking is a modest 325 and sits at 224 in the list of doubles.
Ruud, on the other hand, doesn’t even play doubles on the tour. However, as had often been the case, the powerful singles player had an advantage over the doubles specialists.
The Norwegian pair needed a break point each in the first and third set to clinch the rubber.
The Yuki-Saketh couple had enjoyed some success at Challenger level where they reached a few finals, but at a level a few notches higher the pair failed to keep India afloat despite better understanding on paper. , compared to the pair of Ruud and Durasovic.
With Norway taking an unassailable 3-0 lead, the two reverse singles will not be played.
The Indian side were eyeing a heavy defeat after conceding a 0-2 lead to the hosts following Ramkumar’s loss to Durasovic in the second single on Friday night.
Ramkumar, India’s number one singles player, failed to live up to expectations as he suffered a 1-6, 4-6 loss to lower-ranked opponent Durasovic in an hour and 16 minutes.
After Prajnesh Gunneswaran lost to world No. 2 and US Open runner-up Ruud in an expected result in the first singles, it fell to Ramkumar to keep India level by winning the second game.
But it was not to be as Ramkumar, ranked 276th in the world, proved no match for the 325th-ranked Durasovic, who broke the Indian’s serve three times and dispatched 12 aces against three by his opponent at Hakons Hall Hard Court. indoor installation.
Durasovic fired five aces in the first set while breaking Ramkumar’s serve twice. In the first set, Ramkumar could only hold his first serve to make it 1-1, but after that it was Durasovic all the way. Ramkumar also committed two double faults which made things worse for him as Durasovic easily won the first set.
Ramkumar tried to come back in the second set but he failed to hold his second service game to give Durasovic a 2-1 lead. The Indian couldn’t break Durasovic’s serve as the Norwegian fired seven aces. Leading 5-4, Durasovic held his serve to close the match.
Earlier, in the first Friday singles, Ruud was too good for Prajnesh.
Ruud, who finished second at the US Open after dropping to Carlos Alcaraz Monday, reported for national duty four days later and did the work for his team. He beat the 335-ranked Indian 6-1, 6-4 in an hour and two minutes.
After being totally dominated in the first set, Prajnesh upped his game in the second to make it harder for Ruud. While the Indian failed to secure a break point, his most accomplished opponent converted three of the five opportunities he got.