Bengaluru: The Garden City will host the first-ever Billie Jean King Cup playoffs to be staged in the country. The three-day, three-team event will be played from Nov 14. India, logged in Group G, pooled alongside seventh seeds Netherlands and Slovenia in the draw that was done in the ITF offices on Thursday. India had rallied in April to make the playoffs, where 21 countries were placed in seven groups. The other host nations are Mexico (Monterrey), Poland (Gorzow Wielkopolski), Argentina (Cordoba), Croatia (Varazdin), Austraia (Hobart), and Germany (Ismaning).The Indian team – Shrivalli Bhamidipaty, ranked 322, Sahaja Yamalapalli, 342, Ankita Raina, 347, Vaidehi Chaudhari 368, and Prarthana Thombre (145 doubles), led by non-playing captain Vishal Uppal, impressed in the Zonals in April, finishing behind New Zealand in the Asia-Oceania Pool.
In Nov, the hosts will be tested by Dutch No.1 Suzan Lamens ranked No. 70 and No 2 Arantxa Rus, 91. The Slovenia No. 1 is Veronica Erjavec ranked 172. This is only the second time that India has made the playoffs in tournament history, and the first since 2021, when India lost 1-3 to Jelena Ostapenko’s Latvia.Quiz: Who’s that IPL player?The seven group winners progress to the 2026 qualifiers, while the remaining 14 will compete in Group I next year. The renamed Karnataka State Lawn Tennis Association’s facility – the SM Krishna Tennis Stadium – at Cubbon Park will be the venue. Sunil Yajaman, joint-secretary of the Association, said the Laykold courts — also the surface of the US Open — will be resurfaced for the playoffs.
