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New Delhi: India's top singles player Sumit Nagal has made his much-awaited return to the Davis Cup fold after a gap of two years while number one doubles player Yuki Bhambri has also followed the footsteps. Ramkumar Ramanathan has however been dropped.
Both of the celebrated players missed two ties as the AITA selection panel picked an eight-member squad for the away match against Switzerland. India would be travelling to Biel for the World Group I first-round tie, which is scheduled to be played on indoor courts from September 12. Nagal would wish to get rid of his lean patch which has been stuck with him in this season.
Meanwhile, Nagal made his last appearance in the home tie against Morocco in Lucknow in September 2023 where he emerged victorious in both his singles matches in India's 4-1 win. The stylish tennis player did not travel to Pakistan for the historic match in February 2024 and subsequently missed the games against Sweden and Togo.
He did not travel to Pakistan for the historic tie in February 2024 and also missed the subsequent matches against Sweden and Togo. Nagal, who was once one of the best players in the game in India, dropped outside the top-300 bracket because of lack of form and negative results this season. His best finish in as many as last 10 months has been the semifinal finish at the Trieste Challenger in Italy in the current month.
Apart from Nagal, who is ranked 306 currently, India has selected players like Karan Singh ranked 403 and young gun Aryan Shah who is currently ranked 442. Sasikumar Mukund (463) and Dakshineshwar Suresh (790) will be the reserve singles players for the tie. Top-ranked Bhambri (ranked 35), and N Sriram Balaji (75) are the doubles players chosen in the squad which will have Rithvik Bollipalli (77) as reserve.
