Balaji is core member of team, can be considered for next tie: Rajpal

New Delhi, Dec 25 (PTI) India's Davis Cup captain Rohit Rajpal on Thursday said experienced doubles specialist N Sriram Balaji remains very much in the national reckoning despite being left out of the squad for the upcoming tie against the Netherlands, stressing that team combinations dictated the selection.

Rajpal explained that the choice was influenced by the need for a deuce-court specialist in the doubles pairing, with Rithvik Bollipalli fitting that role alongside Yuki Bhambri, who prefers to play from the ad court.

"Looking at combinations, we were searching for a deuce-court player. Yuki plays only from the ad court, so Rithvik is a deuce-court specialist. Balaji will remain in the fray," Rajpal told PTI.

The deuce court is the right side of the court from where each game starts , while the ad court (Advantage) is the left side.

The skipper underlined that Balaji's omission should not be seen as a reflection of his ability or standing within the team, pointing to the Chennai-based player's proven record in pressure situations.

"Balaji has played singles earlier at crucial times for India and has handled crucial rubbers for the country. He is a core member of the Indian team and could very well be considered for the next tie, if fit," Rajpal added.

India will face the Netherlands in the Davis Cup Qualifiers on February 7-8 in Bengaluru.

Aryan Shah pulls out =============== It has been learnt that reserve player Aryan Shah has pulled out of the tie, a development that has irked the All India Tennis Association (AITA).

"He made himself available for the tie but after the team announcement, he wrote to the AITA that he was not available for the match. This is not appreciated," said an AITA source.

Aryan Shah is ranked 403, and is the number two India player behind top-ranked Sumit Nagal (277).

Aryan could have felt ignored by the selection committee when players ranked below him -- Karan Singh (471) and Dhakshineswar Suresh (524) -- were included in the playing squad while he was named as a reserve.

Dhakshineswar had played a key role in India's inspiring victory against Switzerland in the away tie in September.

The AITA may not look for a replacement since Anirudh Chandrasekhar and Digvijay Pratap Singh are already there as other reserve players. PTI AT AT AH AH