By TERRY MADDAFORD
The war in Iraq and the threat of Sars have not been the biggest worry for the New Zealand Davis Cup team in this week's build-up to the tie with India.
"We haven't thought too much about them," said non-playing captain Glenn Wilson.
"Our biggest concern has been the
Calcutta traffic. It has been a nightmare getting from the hotel to the courts."
But that had been the only hiccup as his team prepared for the crucial tie.
Wilson was even willing to shrug off the discomfort of temperatures in the mid-30s and humidity hovering around 95 per cent.
"Playing on grass means the points are not as long, so the conditions are not the factor they would be on clay or hardcourts, where the points are a lot longer.
"If we had been playing on either of those surfaces, our chances [of winning] here would be next to nothing."
Even on grass it promises to be a real battle as Wilson and his team of Mark Nielsen, Alistair Hunt, James Shortall and Robbie Cheyne try to preserve New Zealand's unbeaten record on the subcontinent.
In 1975, Onny Parun and Brian Fairlie beat India 3-1 in Lucknow. Three years later, joined by Chris Lewis and Russell Simpson, Parun and Fairlie got home 4-1 in New Delhi. In between times, they scored an epic 3-2 win in Auckland.
But India's solitary success might have more significance.
On the hardcourts in Wellington a year ago they beat New Zealand 4-1 after Nielsen had given the home team an early 1-0 lead.
New Zealand will go in with the same lineup - Nielsen as their No. 1 singles player and Hunt at No. 2 - while India have named Rohan Bopanna at No. 1 with Leander Paes at two.
Nielsen, ranked 338 by the ATP, will play Paes (ranked 1003) first-up this afternoon (4.30pm NZ time) followed by Hunt (ranked 1336) against Bopanna (348).
In tomorrow's doubles, Nielsen and Hunt will team up against the formidable Indian pairing of Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi.
Paes, a hero in Calcutta, can expect huge hometown support.
"The build-up this week has been amazing.
"Tennis is not a huge sport in India ... but this tie has brought the place to life.
"We have never had so much media attention.
"In one interview session I was staring at eight or 10 television cameras."
Wilson said the courts were superb - after a huge overnight downpour they were able to have a full practice session next morning.
There has been some frantic construction work to build bamboo stands.
"The stadium will seat 3500, but they are expecting between 2000 and 3000, with Paes the obvious hero.
"Like Pakistan, tennis here is the domain of the rich and middle class, but with between 10 and 12 million of them from a population of 1.14 billion, you would expect more players to come through.
"It is going to be hard, but we know we went close last year," said Wilson.
"If Mark had won the fifth set against Paes it would have been 2-2 and we would have been in with a real chance."
The stakes this time are as high.
Victory would earn the New Zealanders the chance to play a first- round loser from the world group in September.
Included among those possibilities are Britain, Brazil, the United States, Romania, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
Asked if all players would be available for such a tie, Wilson said: "Everyone would be putting up their hand for that one, including my mother."
Hunt, 30, plays his 17th cup tie this week. It could be his last, then again a world group tie may have more appeal as a finale.
New Zealand v India
* 1975 in Lucknow, India. New Zealand won 3-1 (one game unfinished).
* 1976 in Auckland. New Zealand won 3-2.
* 1978 in New Delhi, India. New Zealand won 4-1.
* 2002 in Wellington. India won 4-1.
By TERRY MADDAFORD
The war in Iraq and the threat of Sars have not been the biggest worry for the New Zealand Davis Cup team in this week's build-up to the tie with India.
"We haven't thought too much about them," said non-playing captain Glenn Wilson.
"Our biggest concern has been the
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