India on Sunday convincingly won their Davis Cup tie against Pakistan to confirm their place in the World Group I. The Zeeshan Ali-led side beat Pakistan 4-0 to advance to the next round. The visitors won the opening doubles and second singles matches on grass to notch up a convincing win. Niki Poonacha, playing in his first Davis Cup tie, needed only 64 minutes to beat a young Muhammad Shoaib 6-3, 6-4. In spite of the convincing win, non-playing captain Zeeshan Ali declined to confirm Niki’s place in the Indian team in the next Davis Cup tie.
The Indian duo of Saketh Myneni and Yuki Bhambri started the onslaught with a straight set win over Pakistan’s Aqeel Khan and Muzammil Murtaza, winning 6-2, 7-6.
Niki Poonacha took 64 minutes to win the singles. He looked composed for someone playing his first Davis Cup tie. However, he might not be considered in India’s next Davis Cup match, hinted Zeeshan Ali.
“We’ll have to wait and see. The selection committee obviously decides. But It was very important for Nikki to get his first match in today. He came out today and delivered what we expected of him. Going into the next time, he now knows what it feels like to play Davis Cup for India. So that definitely helps in terms of selection as well. All the players know they have to keep performing and improving their ranks in the circuit,” Zeeshan said in the post-match press conference.
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