Ramesh confident of Davis Cup team doing well

The Indian team have its hands full while fighting sub-zero temperatures when they take on China in the Asia-Oceania Zone I Davis Cup rubber in Beijing from February 9 to 11.

The team, which arrived for the first round tie, "is in high spirits despite sub-zero temperatures and heavy snow as both Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi are on duty", non-playing captain Ramesh Krishnan said on Tuesday.

The five-match rubber will be played at Lang Fang, some 70 kilometres from Beijing.

"We are getting used to the severe weather conditions and are confident about the upcoming match against China," Krishnan said, adding that all the players are in good form.

The draw will be held on Thursday.

India has 1-0 Davis Cup record against China, having beaten them 5-0 in Calcutta in 1999 -- the last time Paes and Bhupathi played together for their country before injuries kept either of them out of the team in the subsequent ties.

The Indian team comprises Paes, Bhupathi, Prahlad Srinath and Syed Fazaluddin, with former national champion Nandan Bal making his debut as Davis Cup coach, replacing Enrico Piperno.

China is most likely to field the same team that played in the Asia Cup in New Delhi last December.

Zhu Ben-Qiang, Zhang Yu and Wang Yu led the Chinese challenge but failed to win any rubber in the four-nation event which also included India, South Korea and Thailand.

In the absence of Paes, India lost one tie to China but won the rubber 2-1 with Bhupathi doing all the work.