New Delhi: Tennis fans had just started filling the 4,000-seat RK Khanna Tennis Stadium when India clinched the Davis Cup World Group I playoff against Togo, sweeping the African team 4-0 on Sunday.

On Saturday, Sasikumar Mukund and Ramkumar Ramanathan set the tone with a 2-0 lead for India. Then, on Day 2, N Sriram Balaji and newcomer Rithvik Choudary Bollipalli wrapped things up in under an hour, securing India’s place in World Group I, with the next tie scheduled for September.

Balaji and Rithvik sealed the deal with a solid performance, taking down Hod’abalo Isak Padio and M’lapa Tingou Akomlo 6-2, 6-1 in the doubles match, ensuring India’s victory.

The duo thrived on the home crowd's energy at the Delhi Lawn Tennis Association (DLTA) complex, taking control early by breaking their opponents’ serve in the fourth game of the first set and finishing it off with another break in the eighth.

The second set was even more lopsided, as the Togolese pair struggled to hold serve, giving up breaks in the fourth and sixth games, leading to a convincing win for India.

Rohit Rajpal, India’s non-playing captain, was super excited about his team's performance and highlighted how this victory is a great sign for the future of Indian tennis.

“The goal here was to bring in some young talent, get them on the bench, and help them handle the pressures of the Davis Cup so we can start nurturing some solid Davis Cup players,” Rajpal explained.

“They're already doing well on the Tour, but as I mentioned, it’s a whole different experience playing in front of a home crowd. There’s a lot of expectation, and that creates a unique kind of pressure.”

India has a rich history of relying on its doubles teams in Davis Cup matches, with icons like Leander Paes, Mahesh Bhupathi, and Rohan Bopanna making significant contributions over the years.

Rajpal praised Balaji and Rithvik for demonstrating the strength of India’s doubles talent.

Doubles was a breeze, but there are high expectations for the doubles players. I'm really thrilled with how Bala and Rithvik came out swinging. It was an awesome match today, and I'm looking forward to building this team for the future so we can compete with the best in the world, he mentioned.

Since the tie was already in the bag, India sent Karan Singh out for the first reverse singles match against Padio. The 21-year-old kicked things off strong, breaking his opponent’s serve in the second game and easily taking the first set.

Karan seemed on track for an easy win as he jumped to a 4-0 lead in the second set with a double break. He did lose a bit of steam for a moment, dropping his serve, but quickly got back on track to finish it off 6-2, 6-3.

With the tie already decided in India’s favor, the fifth and final match didn’t take place.

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