We still have a lot to learn: Kirtane

It was a best-ever eighth place finish for India’s junior Davis Cup squad. But according to coach Sandeep Kirtane, it was ‘‘an experience where limitations surfaced despite putting our best foot forward’’. ‘‘We’ve got a lot to learn,’’ Kirtane conceded after his team of Rupesh Roy, Sanam Singh and Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan lost to Australia 1-2 in the playoff for the seventh place.

For Kirtane, the performance was a mix of positives and negatives. Having lost three encounters Czech Republic (group stage), Argentina and Australia on the trot, Kirtane believes ‘‘we had our chances’’. ‘‘The boys proved they can compete at this level and were no pushovers’’.

According to him, the big problem was ‘‘getting used to the spin factor at this level. The boys were unable to sustain the consistency in long periods, especially against the Europeans who play with a lot of spin on the clay-courts.

Picking favourites, Kirtane says, Jeevan was ‘‘undoubtedly the best of the lot’’. Asked to pick the pros and cons of the three, he says, ‘‘Jeevan was agressive and quick to adapt, but rushed often at crutial junctures; Rupesh is talented but needs to analysie his game while on-court; and Sanam was impressive, and became a handy player quickly.’’