Dubai: The Singapore and Jordan coaches said they hoped to build on their respective wins on the opening day of the Group IV Asia/Oceania Davis Cup encounters at the Aviation Club here on Monday.
Singapore and Jordan were joined by Qatar and Turkmenistan as winners on the first day of the week-long competition.
Turkmenistan and Singapore were easy winners in Pool A with convincing 3-0 results against Bangladesh and Bahrain, while Qatar and Jordan battled it out in Pool B before securing 2-1 wins against Saudi Arabia and Myanmar respectively.
“This win is a huge relief for us after being denied promotion to Group III on at least two occasions by Myanmar, the last time being 2010, when the qualifiers were held in Amman,” said Hazem Adas, President, Jordan Tennis Association.
Adas, who is doubling up as captain and coach during the week in Dubai, was thrilled to hit the ground running with a win. “Meetings against Myanmar have always been tricky for us in the past. It is a huge relief to get one [game] out of the way and start on a winning note,” he said.
Georgiy Pochay and Aleksandr Ernepesov won their singles to give Turkmenistan a 2-0 lead and then Eziz Dovletov teamed up with Pochay to win the doubles and seal a fine 3-0 result.
Singapore were similarly clinical in their approach, with Rohan Kamdar and the well-travelled Roy Alif Hobbs securing wins over Yousuf Qaed and Hassan Abdul Nabi in the singles. Basir Koh Fu Rong and teenager Issac Jie Yong Ong then defeated Abdul Karim Abdul Nabi and Abdul Nabi to make it 3-0.
“The weather was a huge factor, but we are pleased the way we applied ourselves out there today,” the Singapore captain Hassan Bin Bohari told Gulf News.
“These players have trained hard and I think we have Group III within our sights for next year. However, this is only the first day. In Davis Cup it is how you perform on all the days. I can only hope that they sustain this momentum.”
The Pool B encounters went the distance with Qatar overturning their recent defeat to Saudi Arabia in the GCC Tennis Championships, while Jordan got the better of an experienced Myanmar side.
“This win is not just revenge but also a huge mental relief for our team,” said Qatar’s Morocco coach Mounir Elaarej. “Even though we lost our first singles, we believed we could turn things around in the second singles and doubles.”
