Sri Lanka is all set to take on the Philippines in their first round Group 2 Davis Cup Tie. The two teams who compete in the Asia Oceania zone will battle it out on the 6th, 7th and 8th of March at the Valle Verde Country Club in the Philippines.
The tie will comprise of a total of two singles, one doubles and two reverse singles, which will be played on the first, second and third days of the tie respectively. All the matches will be played according to a best of five set format and the first country to win three of the five matches will be the team to move forward to the next round.
The odds are undoubtedly in the favor of the home side that has never lost to a Lankan side in the Davis Cup. The two team’s most recent meeting was in the year 2014 and the team from the Philippines recorded a comfortable 3-1 victory over their counterparts.
Both teams are set to field teams that feature more or less the same sides that met in 2014 except with minor changes with regards to each team’s fourth player.
The team from the Philippines will be represented by non playing captain Roland Kraut, Treat Huey, Ruben Gonzales, Patrick John Tierro and Francis Alacantara. The team’s star player is their most experienced campaigner Treat Huey. Huey made his first appearance in 2009 and is a versatile player whose game style involves serving and volleying accompanied by crafty play from the baseline. His love for doubles is evident in the fact that he has a world ranking of 60 and he will be one of the players to look out for as far as the tie is concerned. He will be offered able support by Gonzales and Tierro who were also apart of last year’s tie. The big serving Gonzales recorded wins in both the matches he played last year and will be looking to extend his perfect record against the Lankans. The only change from the team’s last meeting with Sri Lanka is the inclusion of the youngster Alacantara. His dynamism and explosive play could also be a great source of inspiration for his side if he is given the green light to play.
The Lankan side comprises non playing captain Rohan De Silva, Harshana Godamanna, Sharmal Dissanayake, Dineshkanthan Thangarajah and Sankha Atukorale. The team’s hopes and strength lie in the hands of Godamanna who has been the soul of the team for the past few years. His ability to kick things up a notch when playing for his country is something truly phenomenal and he will once again be the man the Lankans turn to as far as this year’s Davis Cup campaign is concerned. However injury concerns surround the Lankan and it will remain to be seen if he will have a part to play in the upcoming tie. The future of the team is undoubtedly the talented Dissanayake who will be looking to prove himself as someone worthy of carrying the torch that Godamanna has made his own. The side is offered further strength by Thangarajah and Atukorale who are two of the country’s best players.
Other ties within the same group that will be played on the same days are as follows.
· Pakistan vs Kuwait
· Chinese Taipei vs Lebanon
· Iran vs Indonesia
