New Delhi: India’s Davis Cup tie against Pakistan was on Thursday postponed to November after an in-depth security review by the International Tennis Federation, which retained Islamabad as the venue despite the current “exceptional circumstances”.
The decision was taken after a meeting of the ITF’s Davis Cup committee following persistent pleas by India to either shift the tie to a neutral venue or postpone it given the currently high diplomatic tension between the two countries. The dates of the tie will be known by September 9. “Following an in-depth security review of the current situation in Pakistan by independent expert security advisors, the Davis Cup Committee has taken the decision to postpone the Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Group I tie between Pakistan and India in Islamabad, due to be played on 14-15 September,” the ITF said in a statement. “The Committee concluded that this is an exceptional circumstance while the first priority of the ITF is the safety and security of athletes, officials and spectators. The tie has been rescheduled for November, with the exact dates to be confirmed by the Committee no later than 9 September.” The ITF said it “will continue to monitor the situation in Pakistan and the Davis Cup Committee will re-convene to re-examine the security situation in advance of the tie.” The tie has become a matter of speculation ever since Pakistan downgraded diplomatic ties with India citing the revocation of the special status enjoyed by the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. India had named a full-strength team for the September 14-15 tie in Islamabad. But after Jammu and Kashmir was turned into a union territory, Pakistan asked the Indian ambassador to leave their country. (PTI)
