KARACHI: Pakistan vowed yesterday to come up with a forceful showing against Philippines in their Davis Cup second round encounter in Manila next month.
But their coach Rashid Malik made it clear that the July 10-12 tie will be a tough one because of the energy-sapping weather conditions in Manila, which was chosen to host the match after it was moved from Lahore because of security concerns.
“We will go out there and give our best,” Malik told Arab News just before the team’s departure to Kuala Lumpur, where the national players will prepare for the Davis Cup assignment.
“It’s very important for us to win this tie because we have to regain our place in Group I,” added Malik, a former Pakistan No. 1.
Pakistan, who won the Davis Cup Asia-Oceania Group-I contest in 2005 to reach the World Group playoffs, have been languishing in lower rungs of the competition the last few years. But Malik and his men are confident that they will qualify for Group I by the end of their 2009 Davis Cup campaign.
A victory over the Philippines will put Pakistan in the Group II final, just one step away from a Davis Cup promotion.
Dilawar Abbas, Pakistan Tennis Federation (PTF) president, said that his boys will get a boost once Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi — Pakistan’s biggest tennis stars — joins the team in Manila.
“Aisam is currently in the Wimbledon and will join the team in Manila before the tie,” said Dilawar. “He is a world-class player and can help Pakistan beat the Philippines even in their own backyard.”
Aisam is regarded among the top tennis players in Asia and was the major reason why Pakistan accented to the World Group Playoff four years ago.
While Aisam is busy in his Wimbledon campaign, his Davis Cup teammates will be busy featuring in an International Tennis Federation (ITF) Futures tournament in Malaysia. They have been sent to Malaysia to take part in the tournament in a bid to help them adapt with the hot and humid weather in the Far East.
The national players will reach Manila on July 2, almost eight days before the start of the best-of-five tie against the hosts.
Pakistan are looking to beat Philippines and qualify for the Group II final this year. A win against the Philippines will place them against the winner of the New Zealand-Indonesia tie in the final.
Like Pakistan, Philippines have had mixed fortunes in the Davis Cup arena in recent years. After two successive promotions, the Filipino slost all three of their ties in 2008 and were relegated to Asia Oceania Zone Group II for 2009. Their best Davis Cup showing came in 1991, when they featured in the World Group playoffs.
The Philippines were Eastern Zone champion in 1957, 1958, 1960, and 1964. Since making their Davis Cup debut in 1926 they have played 122 Davis Cup ties, winning 65 and losing 57 of them. They qualified for the Davis Cup next round this year by beating Hong Kong 4-1 in the opening rounds. Cecil Mamiit, an experienced professional, is their best player and spearheads a team that includes Eric Taino, Johny Arcilla and Patrick-John Tierro.
Meantime, Dilawar Abbas, the Pakistan Tennis Federation (PTF) president, will make the appeal at the annual general meetings of the International Tennis Federation (ITF) to be held in Madrid next month.
“It is very important for our tennis that foreign teams come to Pakistan for Davis Cups and other international tournament,” Dilawar said. “I will certainly be raising this issue at the annual ITF meetings in Madrid,” added Dilawar, who is also a vice president of the Asian Tennis Federation (ATF).
He will be representing Pakistan in the ITF moot to be held from July 15-17.
Tennis, a sport that is struggling for recognition in Pakistan, received major blows earlier this year when two of the country’s Davis Cup games were relocated from Lahore because of security reasons.
The London-based ITF first moved Pakistan’s Davis Cup Asia-Oceania Group-I match against Oman from Lahore to Muscat. Pakistan protested against the move but the ITF decided against reversing the decision and the tie was played in Muscat where the Pakistanis won it 4-1.
Just a few weeks later, it was decided that Pakistan’s home game against Philippines will be switched from Lahore to Manila because of the same reason — security apprehensions.
The move ignited a strong protest from the PTF which raised a question mark on the security situation in the Philippines and asked the Davis Cup authorities to move the tie to a neutral venue.
Philippines’ tennis bosses had asked the ITF to move the tie from Lahore to a neutral venue because of security concerns. The PTF wanted the ITF to move the tie to a neutral venue like Malaysia or Singapore. However, their demand was turned down by the ITF.
