Now both men have made history for their country, leaving a permanent mark on the history books.
President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovi again seen backing her nation in a top showdown with France
Djokovic etched his name in history by clinching a record 24 Grand Slam titles
Both Balaji and Bhambri have got some decent results on clay in lead up to the Roland Garros, where the action will unfold during the Summer Olympics from July 27.
Nadal eyes participation in Davis Cup Finals, 2020 Olympics
India's veteran tennis ace Leander Paes hinted at possible retirement on Monday, saying he now relies on experience to outsmart opponents and shouldn't be playing past another year.
In singles, Sumit Nagal was placed at world No. 256 as the top-ranked Indian men's singles player in ATP Rankings, while Asian Games bronze medallist Ankita Raina was the best India women's singles player at world No. 212.
Novak Djokovic's latest triumph at the US Open saw him equal Margaret Court's record of 24 Grand Slam singles titles.
'I'm happy to be part of this Italian movement. People, they start to play tennis now more and more, which is great to see. I think that's the most important.'
Novak Djokovic is still uncertain whether he will take part in the 2022 Australian Open but will soon make a decision, the World No 1 said after Serbia's 2-1 defeat by Croatia in the Davis Cup semi-finals on Friday.
Former Davis Cup captain Anand Amritraj is baffled that India's best singles players are not able to win close matches on the ATP World Tour despite having a decent game to back them.
Spanish veteran Feliciano Lopez extended his career by at least one more day with an emotional victory at the Mallorca Open.
The Indo-Australian pair will now meet the sixth-seeded Argentine duo of Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni.
The All India Tennis Association says an unflattering perception is being created about it in the wake of Mahesh Bhupathi's removal as captain when it actually selected Rohit Rajpal because the ITF, till the last moment, had not given the impression that it would move the Davis Cup tie out of Islamabad.
Former Davis Cupper Rohit Rajpal, who was already a member, has been elevated as Chairman.
It is learnt that Nagal was dropped from the Indian Davis Cup team because of disciplinary issues, which the 19-year-old has refuted.
India's former Davis Cup captain Mahesh Bhupathi on Thursday said he cannot get over the "hurt" caused by the national federation's manner of sacking him but it is hardly a surprise given how the body has dealt with players in the last two decades.
India's first and only tennis medal in the history of Olympic Games came way back in 1996, when Leander Paes claimed the singles bronze in Atlanta.
He may have entered the semifinal as the underdog, but Jannik Sinner's stunning victory over overwhelming favourite Novak Djokovic left the Melbourne crowd shocked.
US Open champion Carlos Alcaraz crashed to defeat on his debut as world number one, losing to Canada's Felix Auger-Aliassime in their Davis Cup Finals group-stage clash on Friday.
The ATP Players Council has proposed the scheduling of a tennis 'World Cup' to provide a less rigorous international competition than the current Davis Cup, Serbian world number three Novak Djokovic said on Wednesday.
Leander Paes has pulled out of the Asian Hopman Cup due to finger injury.
The All India Tennis Association (AITA) on Friday voiced its support for Leander Paes, advising a section of media to consider his illustrious Davis Cup career before questioning his commitment.
"The recent developments have resulted in an atmosphere which is not conducive for a happy friendly tie between the two teams which have immense respect for each other," AITA General Secretary Hironmoy Chatterjee wrote to the ITF in an email seen by Reuters.
Davies's poor spot-kick was saved low to his right by goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois and Canada wasted numerous other opportunities to open the scoring.
Outgoing Davis Cup captain S P Misra has said with quality players such as Somdev Devvarman and Yuki Bhambri in the team, India have a good chance to qualify for the World Group next year.
David Nalbandian beat Nikolay Davydenko 6-2, 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 in the first reverse singles to pull Argentina level 2-2 against Russia.
Former Davis Cup captain Jaidip Mukerjea on Thursday termed Leander Paes' unceremonious ouster as sad but said it is a step in the right direction.
The Indian junior Fed Cup team has qualified for the World Group after finishing third in the Asia/Oceania Final Qualifying event following a 2-1 win over New Zealand in the Play-off, in New Delhi on Saturday.
The Indian tennis federation on Saturday confirmed that it will approach world governing body ITF, seeking a neutral venue for the Davis Cup tie against Pakistan.
Injured United States striker Charlie Davies was ruled out of this year's World Cup after failing to make the preliminary squad named on Tuesday.
Banned Serbian tennis player Viktor Troicki was "innocent" of a doping violation and the country's Davis Cup team supported him, World No 1 Novak Djokovic said on Tuesday.
The Australian Open champion has not fully recovered from a knee injury and will miss next month's Masters Cup in Shanghai.
Having stolen the limelight from Davis Cup stalwart Stan Wawrinka, Roger Federer quickly turned attention towards his Switzerland team mates after securing the winning point in the final against France on Sunday.
Jannik Sinner won his maiden Grand Slam title at the Australian Open on Sunday.
Spain are the first nation to join exempted France, Australia, Czech Republic and hosts Hungary in the revamped finals taking place in April.
Leander Paes gave ample indications that he will not announce his Davis Cup retirement.
All the action from football matches played in Europe on Wednesday
Balaji also showed that he can quickly adapt to conditions when he was asked to do the singles duty during the Davis Cup tie against Pakistan on grass. The rival was not of the highest quality but Balaji showed that he was willing to come out of his comfort zone if the team demands.
Kyrgios, who opted out of Australia's Davis Cup team this year, later posted a video on Instagram where he was seen out in the sunshine at a harbour with the caption 'Beautiful day'.
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