Mumbai: Sumit Nagal and Davis Cup has been a rocky ride over the last couple of years driven largely by off-court noise. Until, with Nagal’s charged up celebrations after his two wins across Friday and Saturday in the indoor Swiss Arena, it was redirected on track and to the court.
It had been a couple of years since that happened. After his last Davis Cup appearance in September 2023, the top Indian singles pro’s absence became the bigger talking point than often the tie itself, with people outside and inside the federation questioning his non-presence.
And so, after his presence lifted India to one of its finest Davis Cup victories this century — Nagal won both his singles matches to lead the team to a 3-1 upset of ninth seeds Switzerland in Biel — it meant a bit more to him.
“I’ve always been motivated to play for India. But there were unfortunate events that didn’t give me a chance to play — having an injury and then the discussions with AITA (All India Tennis Association),” said Nagal, a two-time Olympian.
“I just hope the people that were pointing fingers at me, saying if I’m not capable of playing Davis Cup and all such things… I don’t know the last time a single player from India won two points in Europe against a European country.”
That would also be the last time India beat a European country in Europe, when Leander Paes won both his singles matches and Ramesh Krishnan the decider in the 3-2 win against France in Cannes in 1993.
The finger pointing heightened around India’s trip to Sweden in September 2024, between two ties against weaker opponents in Pakistan (away, February 2024) and Togo (home, February 2025) that also did not feature Nagal who was in the top 100 last year.
After India were blanked 4-0 in Sweden, AITA issued a statement saying Nagal, along with two other players, “refused to play for the country” even though “participating in other tournaments”. Nagal clarified that he had pulled out due to a back issue, adding that he had “informed AITA well in advance about my inability to participate”. Former players and AITA officials, however, questioned Nagal’s absence.
“It didn’t really bother me, but people point fingers without even knowing the reason, I feel it is not right,” said Nagal. “I have always played for my country since the under-14 days and tried to do the best.”
Through this period, India captain Rohit Rajpal, who said in Biel it was great to have Nagal back in the squad, had hoped that differences with the No.1 singles player could be sorted out. Nagal said he had a brief chat with Rajpal after the Switzerland tie.
“He’s given me his word, so I really hope… we can come to an agreement where both, everybody, is happy, you know,” said Nagal.
Asked what those things were, he said: “Professionalism, doing the right things, and treating everyone good.”
Ranked a career-high 68th last year and currently at 290th, Nagal won both his matches in Biel — against 222nd-ranked Marc-Andrea Huesler and Australian Open junior champion Henry Bernet — in straight sets. On the first day, he backed up debutant Dhakshineswar Suresh’s stunning opening win for a 2-0 lead and returned on the second to calmly get India over the line after the lost doubles rubber.
“To be honest, I don’t really remember us having a 2-0 lead against a strong team on the first day. Against Denmark (in 2023) we were 1-1, but otherwise the majority of times it’s been 0-2. That changes a lot. When you go in 1-0, you play with a different mindset and can be a little free,” said Nagal.
Feeling “proud” about the way Dhakshineswar went about his debut outing, the 28-year-old, who has had a quiet season, hopes to take the positivity from this tie onto the tour as well as India’s promotion to the Davis Cup Qualifiers early next year.
“I believe these matches are going to act as a change for my next few months,” Nagal said. “If we keep improving as individuals, we will improve as a team.”
