After a month of pitch preparation, weeks of digging up cricket lawns, turning them into impeccable tennis courts and pitching up temporary wooden stands, hours of training and sweat and hype around the sporting rivalry, the Davis Cup tie between India and Pakistan is all ready to kick-off at the Brabourne stadium in Mumbai from Friday.
The long build-up to the tie is mainly been due to the fact that Mumbai is hosting a Davis Cup match after 43 years, and India is meeting Pakistan after 33 years.
Thursday began with the official draw ceremony at the scenic Raj Bhawan, where dignitaries from both sides emphasized the role of sport and Davis Cup in particular to build bridges of friendship between nations.
Players from both sides, the Pakistanis sporting green blazers and the Indians going for the more traditional sherwanis, smoothed through the formal event, furthering their cause as ambassadors for their country.
But it was back to the tennis courts in the afternoon, as the teams had their only practice sessions on centre court for 90 minutes each.
Also Read
Bopanna draws Qureshi in opener
'We'll give India a good fight'
The main court, a lot greener than the neighbouring practice courts now worn out by almost two weeks of training, that had been the object of curiosity passed the initial test.
"It is a little damp, so there will be lots of sliding and slipping tomorrow," said Pakistan's Aisam Qureshi, who will play the first rubber against Rohan Bopanna on Friday.
Though the teams thought that the bounce was little low, it wasn't uneven and the court was playing pretty fast. India captain Leander Paes though was not sure if the surface would remain the same for all the three days.
The opening match of the tie may well see some big serving and is the most important tie, according to both the teams.
"If Rohan can pull off a win in the first match, that will be a great boost," said India captain Leander Paes. "Prakash's (Amritraj) match (against Aqeel Khan) is the one we are trying to consolidate on. And we want Rohan to push Aisam hard. His performances against (Martin) Verkerk (against Holland) and (Thomas) Johannson (against Sweden) show that he is a very good Davis Cup player.
"For me, Friday is going to be crucial."
According to Pakistan's non-playing captain Rashid Malik, Friday would be a contest between the number one and the number two players from either side.
"We know on ranking Prakash is better at the moment, but Rohan is the more dangerous one. He has a big game and can be dangerous. The returns of serve will be a big factor on grass.
"It's good that Aisam is playing the first match because we are looking for a winning start from him. Of course, he playing first can also work the other way if he loses the opening rubber."
Pakistan have named Asim Shafik and Jalil Khan as their doubles players, but Malik said that the results on Friday would determine their doubles combination for Saturday.
