Kolkata: Tennis sensation Sumit Nagal (19) has a lot to learn from Indian cricket captain Virat Kohli when it comes to discipline. The teenager who shot to fame after winning the junior Wimbledon Doubles title in 2015 has been left out of the Indian Davis Cup team on disciplinary grounds. India faces New Zealand in the Asia/Ocenia Group 1 match to be held between February 3 and 5 in Pune.
Nagal who made his Davis Cup debut against Spain has been found guilty for breaching discipline, sources in the All India Tennis Association (AITA) told PTI. The AITA has earlier named a five-member team for the New Zealand tie, which includes Leander Paes, Saketh Myneni, Yuki Bhambri, Ramkumar Ramanathan and Prajnesh Gunneswaran.
According to the PTI report, Nagal who was in the reserves for the tie against Korea in Chandigarh last July, gave a morning practice session a miss since he had not yet recovered from a massive hangover after drinking in his hotel room. “We got to know that he finished the mini-bar in his hotel room. He is a very talented guy but when you are only 19 years old and you are getting a chance to be in the Indian team and you miss practice sessions, it’s not acceptable,” a source from AITA informed.
In fact, Nagal also brought his girlfriend to Delhi for his debut against Spain without any permission. It was only after instruction from the team’s non-playing captain Anand Amritraj, that Nagal sent his girlfriend back. “Well, he did not ask anyone before bringing his girlfriend to Delhi. When he arrived at the hotel, the girl was with him. Captain Anand Amritraj promptly asked him to send her back which he did,” the source said.
However, it sounds surprising that despite breach of discipline during the tie against Korea, Nagal was allowed to make his Davis Cup debut against Spain which happened later in September. On this, the source clarified, “It came to light only when the squad was already announced for the Spain tie. At that time we were not sure what was happening. When he was countered he denied the charge. We believed him, but things got worse and more stories surfaced, then we had to take a firm stand,” the source said to PTI.
And the charges against Nagal don’t stop here. He gave up mid-way against Marc Lopez of Span because of breathing problems which didn’t impress the AITA. “In the reverse singles, he did not want to finish the match. He kept on saying he wants to retire since he is having breathing problem. He is a young player, if he is not able to play, what is his place in the team,” the source said.
An AITA official on condition of anonymity however says, it’s not all over for the talented tennis player. “He has been set aside temporarily and definitely he has not lost his place permanently because he is a very good player and has good future. He can always come back. But if you are not behaving properly, if you are not having any discipline, you have to reform,” the official said.
“He is young, he played a terrific match against Spain, he could have won his match against Lopez. It was there in the air and we thought, we will give him a miss this time. But he is a great talent. Talent will always be there. It never gets lost,” the official added. Meanwhile, Nagal refused to react on the issue.
The chairman of the selectors, S P Misra was careful in his comments, “Nagal is a talented player. We see spark in him, he is expected to do well for India in Davis Cup.”
A talent like Nagal cannot be wasted and it is up to the AITA to take corrective measures to see him reason. May be a session with Kohli who has become the epitome of discipline will do him good. With Nagal going astray, allegations of indiscipline against Amritraj whose stint comes to an end after the Kiwi tie also gain ground, it seems. The AITA has taken a call on Nagal, but it also needs to ensure that others, if found to have crossed the line are punished too.