Paes, Bhupathi join hands

“Davis Cup is still the ultimate for me. India has built a great tradition over the last 15 years in Davis Cup and I will do anything to keep that going because that’s our responsibility,” Paes said today. “I don’t care who I play, or who I play with.”

New Zealand and India have played three Davis Cup ties, all in the 1970s. New Zealand, during a golden era for tennis, won all three and Paes said India “would have its hands full” breaking their duck against the now lowly-ranked Kiwis.

“World rankings count for little at Davis Cup level,” he said.

“We have not played here for a long, long time and playing away from home is always difficult. The Kiwis have a home court advantage but having said that our team is ready to put our best foot forward for our country and I’m looking forward to adding a few more notches to my belt.”

Paes was hoping a large contingent of Wellington’s Indian population would attend the tie.

“There are 1.2 billion Indians in this world so wherever we go we get supporters coming out of the woodwork.”

Paes, 28, is a former world junior No. 1. He has been based for the past 11 years in Orlando, Florida. He made his Davis Cup debut aged 15 and has been a professional tennis player since 18.

He said New Zealand’s No. 1 Mark Neilsen was the biggest threat but he was aware of Alistair Hunt’s capabilities.

“I know Alistair quite well. We played in an ITF junior circuit when I was about 16 and he is a good player and a great guy. I love playing Davis Cup, it’s my stage to perform on, and we have to come out and play the best tennis we can to win this.”