India captain Rohit Rajpal, who does not play Davis Cup, clarified on Saturday that his “shut up” comment was aimed at a few “agenda-driven” people who constantly attacked him and was not directed at the Davis Cup community. tennis in the country as had been projected. In a free interview with PTI, Rajpal said that people questioning his credentials as Davis Cup captain should do some research and that he is not someone who would cling to the position in the face of resistance from players. He stated that it is not necessary that only an accomplished player can become a good coach and ensure the success of the national team. To reinforce his point, he said that extremely successful players did not have reputable names in their support staff.
Rajpal, who is largely not a controversial person, sparked controversy after India lost 0-4 to Sweden in the previous Davis Cup tie in Stockholm when he told his critics to “shut up”.
Rajpal, 54, admitted that he should not have reacted after being provoked during the media interaction. Rajpal said his strong reaction was a result of the frustration he felt after the loss in front of a good number of Indian fans.
«I myself am the Indian tennis community. I am part of the association, I am part of so many things. My life has been tennis. I could never even dream of something like this, to say shut up to the Indian community. Why would I do that?,” Rajpal said during his visit to the PTI headquarters in Delhi.
«It would never have occurred to me to disrespect someone like that, but to be honest, I shouldn’t have reacted to even those three or four guys either. But the question was asked in such a bad way and also in front of my team sitting next to me. “For me I felt humiliated.” Rajpal said he knows the people who want him gone, but he would not make their names public.
“What I really felt bad about was that one person creates a narrative in the wrong way and that is carried out, and no one even bothers to go back and watch the tape, go into details,” he said, clarifying that the question was not done. on behalf of the entire Indian tennis community, except its “haters.”
Rajpal took over the captaincy in 2019 when then captain Mahesh Bhupathi decided not to travel to Pakistan due to security reasons.
At the time of his appointment and during his tenure, his credentials were questioned. He has only played in one Davis Cup tie in his career: a dead match against Korea in 1990.
He, however, was part of the team that won the bronze medal at the 1990 Asian Games in Beijing.
So, do you feel you deserve to lead India in the Davis Cup? «Whether I deserve to be there or not is not a decision I would want to justify. That is in the hands of the Executive Committee, which is supreme.
«There are quite a few people there who know tennis. “They’ve worked in sports administration since we were kids, so I’m sure they’ll make a balanced decision.”
«The second area is my players. The day I feel like my players feel like someone else will do a better job, I’m the first one out. I don’t need to be told to leave. “I’m ready to go.” even today.” As the discussion turned to his own playing career, Rajpal said he was a perfect example of “what not to do.”
«I had to quit because I slipped two discs in my back. Before that, I beat some very good players. I have played at the highest level. Nobody can take that away from me. I am a medalist in the Asian Games.
«I am also an Asian champion, but I have never decided to talk about it because I don’t want to blow my own trumpet.
«I come again from the group of players who always said let your racket speak for you. Mahesh Bhupati and Somdev, when they were playing, they themselves recommended my name and put a condition before the AITA that I be the captain.” Rajpal said he trained too much due to a lack of guidance and that it cut short his career, in which he beat Leander Paes several times and lost some close matches to greats like Wayne Ferreira and Tim Henman.
«When I look back, I had a bad habit that cost me my career: getting up at five in the morning and running 20 kilometers on the road.
“In those days, we didn’t have good cushioned shoes. We had a local shoe that sponsored me. And I ran in that shoe seven days a week. Every day of my life, I ran 20 kilometers on the road to build endurance.
«And then obviously I’m a good example, as my coaches say, that I didn’t know when to stop. I only stopped when it got dark. “I just believed that hard work would help me get ahead.” He recalled the time he challenged some of the highest-ranked players in the world.
«I was lucky to train in Sweden and at Harry Hoffman’s in Tampa, Florida. I was training at the time with Jim Courier and he was a slugger. And, after a full day, he would leave and I would still train. two more hours after he left, just to be better than him.
«I went in too much. And that’s how my career ended very quickly. At 19, 20, he was already a guy with two herniated discs in his back and a very bad left leg. Wayne Ferrera, when I played against him, he was world number 11 in the ATP. It was a close match.
«Tim Henman, again, is a top-level player and I don’t need to tell you his credentials. It was a very close match, I lost the tiebreaker in the third set.
«And I don’t blame some people for not being able to know these things. Like I told you, people don’t investigate anymore. People no longer look at things in depth. People look at things. just from the surface, right? And which is a sad part.
“I’m not trying to justify, you know, or trying to blow my trumpet. But I played at a world-class level myself. And nothing, no one can take that away from me.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated channel.)
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