Olympic win can't happen if issue not resolved: Bhupathi

BASELINE VIEW: Bhupathi says the Leander issue needs to be sorted out before the Olympics.

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New Delhi: India's Davis Cup team got the result they wanted over the weekend against Japan. But all is still not well in the camp.

Leander Paes has been named captain for the next year but as Mahesh Bhupathi told CNN-IBN's Rupha Ramani in an exclusive interview, there still a lot that needs sorting out.

Mahesh Bhupathi: We didn't expect to be 2-0 up on the first day. We expected Prakash to get the better of his opponent on Friday because of the grass, but both the Japanese guys surprised us, and I think the Indian guys surprised us even more because they played with a lot of heart.

Rupha Ramani: There was a lot going into this Davis Cup before that. How difficult was it for the four of you to come together and win?

Mahesh Bhupathi: There was uncertainty if we were going to play or not. But for a month we knew we were going to do it, so I think everyone mentally prepared to make sure that we came here and did the best, make sure that India got the win. So, credit to everyone that it happened.

Rupha Ramani: The AITA (All India Tennis Association) has come out saying Leander would stay captain for another year. How do you respond to that?

Mahesh Bhupathi: It's not the communication we received. The AITA has clarified to me that that's not the communication they gave out to the media as well. So, I think we are waiting for them to finish the inquiry and give it back to us and I think we'll go from there.

But I think we made our stance pretty clear this time that we will keep playing for India as long as the AITA is doing their job and addresses the issue.

Rupha Ramani: Talking about the World Group play-off, that's in September. Would you want a non-playing captain to take over that point for that tie?

Mahesh Bhupathi: We're not sure. Again, like I said, we came together and we won this tie. So first things first, I think the team wants a good draw.

Rupha Ramani: Beijing Olympics is coming up. How do you see that going? Are you confident of India's show there?

Mahesh Bhupathi: You just can't go to the Olympics and expect to win like that. There has to be preparation, there has to be communication. So, a lot of things have to fall in place before that happens.

Rupha Ramani: What would you personally want to achieve for that?

Mahesh Bhupathi: Personally I would want to resolve a lot of these issues that have been lingering. I don't think results are just going to happen if these issues are still on the table.