"This is perhaps the strongest Davis Cup team we have had till now. We have three good single players and a doubles specialist. The captain himself has a tremendous Davis Cup record. We have put together the best team," he said.

Defending non-playing captain Leander Paes’s decision to bring in 22-year-old Somdev Dev Varman over experienced Prakash Amritraj for the singles tie, Bal said the move was in the interest of the team.

"It is a tactical move. Somdev’s game is well suited for these courts. He is hitting the ball really well and has an amazing attitude.

"We are also happy with the draw. With Rohan playing the first match, it will take the pressure off Somdev," he said

Bal also said that Somdev’s lack of experience on grass wouldn’t hamper his performance against top Uzabek player Denis Istomin.

"I agree that he is not a terrific grass-court player. But the grass courts in India are not the typical ones, where the ball skids. We have softer courts, which are slow, and they will suit Somdev. People might say that we have put a rookie for the tie, but that speaks of our confidence in him. Istomin is not a good grass player either. It is a 50-50 match," he said.

Bal accepted that though Indian players do well while young, they fail to make impact as they move into the senior ranks.

"It is true younger players do well, but we don’t have many good players in the 17-20 years age group. Also since the Indian parents tend to be protective about shield their kids, they mature late as compared to their Western counterparts.

Besides, there are other problems like funds, which have, now got sorted out."

"The key is to produce players through the system, not in spite of it. We so far have been producing players in spite of the system," he said

However Bal is optimistic about the future of Indian tennis and feels that with the new infrastructure coming up, tennis in India is ready to attain greater heights.

"We have found a tournament system, we have a coaches’ programme in place and corporates are coming to us with money. All this was not there ten years ago. It will be little easier for the players now, especially while travelling abroad. I will say that in two years the tennis scene in India will change for better," he said.

"In our academy in Pune, today we have 1800 kids in the 4-7 age group playing tennis. The same can be said for Delhi, Chennai, Tiruvanaznthapura, and other cities. The focus is to make them first a star athlete at an impressionable age," he added.

Bal also reiterated his faith in Karan Rastogi whom he once hailed to have the potential to become the top Indian player.

"Karan is struggling with his form. But Karan is hard worker. He is only 21-22, and Indian boys do well only when they reach 24-25 years of age. He also got a lot of financial support recently, so I am sure he will bounce back,’" he said.

Bal said it’s time Indian tennis looked beyond Paes and Bhupathi and the baton is passed on to younger generation.

"We of course need to look beyond Leander and Mahesh. They are here for a couple of year or may be a little more. They are of course there to guide the younger lot. But younger lot should push their way through," he said.

The Indian coach is unperturbed by the speculations over his future.

"All I know is that I am still there. I am aware that I have to go some day. I have been coaching for the last 20 years. So if theAll India Tennis Association feels that it has to bring in someone else, I don’t see any problems in that," he said.