Amritraj is Davis Cup captain

Former player Anand Amritraj has been appointed the non-playing captain of the Indian Davis Cup team for 2014. 

The decision was taken on Saturday during All India Tennis Association’s (AITA) Executive Committee Meeting in Goa. The Committee also decided to retain Zeeshan Ali as the coach of the side.

“AITA Executive Committee meeting took place in Goa on 21 Sept 2013, and position of Davis Cup non-playing captain was discussed,” AITA executive vice-president and Secretary-general Bharat Oza said in a statement on Saturday.

“It was decided to nominate Shri Anand Amritraj as the non-playing captain for the year 2014. It was also decided that Shri Zeeshan Ali will continue as the coach.”

Anand, the eldest of the three Amritraj brothers, played in the Davis Cup for two decades from 1968 to 1988. He was part of the Indian team which reached two finals in 1974 (South Africa) and 1987 (Sweden). He played singles and partnered brother, Vijay, in the doubles.

Last year,  the 61-year-old was chosen as one of the four players for the Davis Cup Commitment Award as part of the Centenary Celebrations of the International Tennis Federation (ITF) for 2013.

The venue for the India’s Asia-Oceania Group 1 home tie against Chinese Taipei during January-February, AITA said, would be decided “shortly.”

“It was also decided by the committee that Davis Cup venue should be rotated from state to state to allow more states to get an opportunity to host the matches,” the statement said.