First Kashmir team scheduled to play abroad awaits visa
It is the time for a familiar summer switch for Rafael Nadal. Each June, he trades clay-court coronations for grass-court consternation.
Two weeks ago, Nadal won his 10th French Open title, further cementing his standing as the best clay court player in the history of men’s tennis. Now he must move to less certain footing as the tour shifts to grass, where early career triumphs have given way to challenges.
After a week of rest, Nadal commuted from the east side of his home island to the west, to the site of the Mallorca Open, a women’s grass-court event, where he practiced in the mornings before the heat and the tournament took over. “I still have work to do,” Nadal said at the tournament last week. “The level I’m at now is not enough to compete like I want at Wimbledon.”
After an injury-plagued 2016, Nadal, 31, has recaptured the spark of a few years ago. His victory at Roland Garros was his first major tournament win since the 2014 French Open, and it was perhaps the best performance of his 10 titles there. He did not drop a set and lost only 35 games.
In recent years, however, his fortunes have quickly shifted with the change in surfaces.
At the outset of his career, major successes came more quickly for Nadal on grass than on the hard courts. Before he reached a final at the Australian Open or the US Open, he had already made it to three consecutive finals at Wimbledon. He fell to Roger Federer in 2006 and 2007 before beating him in 2008.
After being unable to defend his title in 2009 because of knee problems, Nadal returned to win his second title there in 2010 and reached another final in 2011.
But after that run of five finals in six years, Nadal’s acuity on grass was abruptly uprooted. In 2012, he suffered a shocking loss to No 100 Lukas Rosol in the second round at Wimbledon. The contentious five-setter ended with Rosol firing aces seemingly at will, a performance that could have been dismissed as an example of a lesser player’s being locked in against a superior foe.
Rather than an outlier, however, that match was an omen. What followed for Nadal was an improbable spell of Wimbledon defeats to players with triple-digit
Real Kashmir football club, which became the first football club from Valley to be invited to play a tournament on foreign soil, is desperately waiting for their visa to UK with the first match scheduled on Monday.
In pre-season friendly matches, the football club from Srinagar was scheduled to play Albion Rovers on July 3, Hamilton under 20s on July 5 and Stenhousmuir on July 8.
Real Kashmir FC made their second division debut last season -- winning three of their six fixtures in the preliminary round.
But unfortunately for the team, their first visa application was rejected for lack of paper work and their second visa application was filed last Wednesday with all relevant paper work including letters from Jammu and Kashmir government, All India Football Federation and the local football association and bank statements.
“I think the lack of paperwork was the main reason for rejection of the first application. We have applied with all the details now. I just pray and hope that our VISA’s come though by the weekend,” said Shamim Meraj, owner of the club. rankings. While he was struggling on grass, he flourished on other surfaces.
Then there was a hint of another reversal in 2015, a quarterfinal loss at Roland Garros followed by a title in Stuttgart, Germany, which was Nadal’s first on grass in five years. Two weeks later at Wimbledon, he was handed an early defeat, by No. 102 Dustin Brown in the second round.
Because of a wrist injury that curtailed his French Open and limited his subsequent tournament appearances last year — and fatigue from match load this year that forced him out of the Queen’s Club event last week — Nadal had not played a match on grass since. He will enter Wimbledon next week without having played a competitive match on the surface in two years.
For Nadal and his coach and uncle, Toni Nadal, the explanation for the dip in his performance on grass is simple: difficulty bending his knees enough for him to hit the surface’s low-bouncing balls with the force he once did.
“When you play on hard court in Australia or USA, you hit the ball up high,” Toni Nadal said. “You don’t need to spend much time low. And also, on grass, the court moves a little. It’s not stable, and when you have problems in your knees, then it’s a problem.”
Nadal did not practice at full intensity in Majorca and acknowledged that he was uncertain how his knees would respond in London. “Then it will be when I have to force it, and we will see how my knees hold up,” Nadal said. “But I have the confidence that they can do it. Then, the results will always depend on many factors.”
Toni Nadal said the tournament was the one where his nephew’s results were most affected by the opponents he faced, particularly in the early rounds, when the lawns are lush and slick. “When you have a bad draw, it is too difficult,” Toni
Nadal said. “Playing there the first week is complicated, and if you play against some very good servers you have a big problem.”
Toni Nadal said he hoped the successful start to Rafael’s season would both motivate and relax him at Wimbledon.
I think the lack of paperwork was the main reason for rejection of the first application. We have applied with details now. I pray and hope that our VISA’s come though When you play on hard court in Australia or USA, you hit the ball up high. On grass, the court moves a little...and when you have problems in your knees, then it’s a problem
When you have a bad draw, it is too difficult. Playing there the first week is complicated, and if you play against some very good servers you have a big problem
But, as of Thursday evening, the team had not heard from the UK embassy and are anxiously waiting.
The team’s accommodation is booked for stay in the University of Glasgow student accommodation and already have paid 1200 pounds as advance.
“For the boys its a dream to play in Europe. It will be heartbreaking if they can’t make it. They have trained very hard in the month of Ramadan and it will be a heart break it we cant make it. Kashmir needs some hope. TicketsforMonday’s game are already up for sale,” Mehraj said.
Senior journalist Barkha Dutt tweeted: “Real Kashmir Football Club invited to play in UK, first match Monday. Living on a wing & prayers for visa. Hope @UKinIndia can help.”