The New Zealand Davis Cup team, though not under any pressure of being the 'underdogs', are wary of the 'grass factor' and Leander Paes in the Asia-Oceania Group I second round Davis Cup tie against India, beginning in Kolkata on Friday.
"It is tough to play on grass, which is quite like an unknown thing to us. It will also be tough to play against Paes, as he is extra motivated while playing for his country," Glenn Wilson, New Zealand team captain, said after a practice session at the South Club ground, the venue of the match.
The four-member New Zealand team, barring lead ranker Mark Nielsen, who is scheduled to reach tomorrow, arrived in Kolkata on Sunday morning.
Terming themselves as "underdogs", the former Davis Cupper said the inexperience of his team on grass courts would be the biggest problem.
"The most difficult challenge in this round is not Paes or (Mahesh) Bhupathi; it is the grass," Wilson said, though expressing satisfaction at the even surface of the court.
New Zealand, who got past Pakistan in the previous round, had suffered a humiliating 1-4 defeat against India in the Davis Cup tie last year on home soil.
While the 338th ranked Nielson, the highest singles rank holder among the two teams, would be the mainstay of the Kiwis, Wilson said they would like to face Paes in the second singles "so that we can take him on after winning the first match".
Besides Nielson, the other members of the team are James Shortall (singles rank 1113), Alistair Hunt (1336) and Robert Cheyne (989) -- a new member in the squad that played against India last year.
The doubles ranking of Nielson is 195 while that of Shortall is 590.
The Indian team, comprising Paes (singles rank 1003, doubles rank 20), Bhupathi (doubles rank 4), Rohan Bopanna (singles rank 348) and Harsh Mankad (singles rank 463), will start assembling later on Sunday.
While Mankad is already in Kolkata, Bopanna and team captain Ramesh Krishnan are expected late in the day.
Paes, who finished runner-up with David Rilk in the Nasdaq Open on Saturday, is expected to return from Florida on Monday while Bhupati is expected on Tuesday.
Wilson refused to divulge his first team but said the big-serving Kiwis, having an average height over six feet, would like to play it from the baseline to counter the tricky ground shots of the Indians.
