Yet, it is among the elite 15 still remaining in this year’s Davis Cup, a position it last attained in 2011 as part of the 16-team World Group in the erstwhile Cup format. India is not an elite tennis nation.
Fine performances against higher-ranked European nations, like the 3-1 victory over Switzerland in September 2025 and the 3-2 success over Netherlands earlier in 2026, have been the catalysts. Switzerland and Netherlands didn’t have all of their best players, and now South Korea is ranked just three places above (16 to India’s 19). In fact, of the countries still in the tournament, which include heavyweights such as Spain, France, the United States and Germany, the bottom three are South Korea, India and Ecuador (23). 52 in 2021. The 28-year-old is returning after 18 months of compulsory military service, and is back up to No. 157. The 26-year-old is not yet a regular on the Tour, but has a 4-0 Davis Cup record and won both his singles and doubles rubbers against Netherlands.
Starting Friday, India will attempt to soar higher when it takes on South Korea in round two of the Davis Cup Qualifiers. At stake in Seoul is a place in the Finals, an ultra-elite grouping of eight nations including defending champion Italy. Luck has been a factor too. This makes the upcoming hard-court tie an even contest. In Soonwoo Kwon, Korea has a multiple-time Tour titlist and someone ranked World No. India’s trump card may again be the big-serving Dhakshineswar Suresh.
“The courts are pretty slow but I still have to use my weapons and stay more patient than rushing through the points,” opined Dhakshineswar. “But you have to adapt, like playing on the Tour, because conditions will be different every week.”