BELGRADE // Titleholders Great Britain won the doubles to lead Serbia 2-1 in their Davis Cup quarter-final on Saturday.
With Wimbledon champion Andy Murray watching from the team box at the downtown outdoor Tasmajdan Stadium, his older bother Jamie teamed with Dom Inglot to beat Nenad Zimonjic and Filip Krajinovic 6-1, 6-7, 6-3, 6-4.
In the decisive reverse singles on Sunday, Dusan Lajovic is scheduled to play Kyle Edmund, and Janko Tipsarevic to face James Ward.
Earlier, Lajovic breezed past Ward 6-1, 6-3, 6-2 to bring Serbia level 1-1.
Zimonjic, the 40-year-old veteran, dropped his serve twice with double-faults for key breaks in the first and third sets. The second was more damaging as it gave Britain a 5-3 lead and Inglot served out the third set with two consecutive aces.
See also: No Andy Murray, no problem for Great Britain with Kyle Edmund leading Davis Cup charge
Zimonjic’s partner, Krajinovic, playing his first Davis Cup doubles, then dropped his serve at the start of the fourth and the Britons never let the advantage slip.
The Drina March, a popular Serbian World War I marching tune, was played between every game and the Serbs had a break point with Inglot serving for the match.
But the Britons saved it, then the Serbs saved one match point when Krajinovic played a great lob. The Britons then got to replay a point because a public fan in the stands shouted “Out” on Inglot’s serve and he hit a service winner to clinch the match.
The second singles could not be played on the opening day because of rain and was postponed until Saturday, when it also began an hour later than scheduled.
But the weather then cleared and Lajovic put Serbia back in the match. He won 10 straight points in breaking Ward at love and holding at love for a decisive 3-1 lead in the third set.
In the opening singles, Edmund beat Tipsarevic 6-3, 6-4, 6-0 on Friday.
Serbia is without top-ranked Novak Djokovic, while Britain is missing No. 2 Andy Murray.
The younger Murray, however, came to Belgrade to support the team from the sidelines, while Djokovic stayed away.
Lajovic broke serve in the opening game and that set the tone for the match.
“A tough start, he didn’t do much wrong,” Ward said. “It’s one of the heaviest clay courts I’ve ever played on, it doesn’t suit my game at all.
“It’s not my ideal surface in slow and heavy conditions. He was just too good today.”
Lajovic agreed about the condition of the clay court after heavy rains overnight.
“As soon as you put pressure on your foot, it falls apart,” Lajovic said.
“I was a little under pressure as we were down 1-0, but I think he was a little less comfortable. I played a good tactical match.”
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Nepotism is the name of the game
Salman Khan’s father, Salim Khan, is one of Bollywood’s most legendary screenwriters. Through his partnership with co-writer Javed Akhtar, Salim is credited with having paved the path for the Indian film industry’s blockbuster format in the 1970s. Something his son now rules the roost of. More importantly, the Salim-Javed duo also created the persona of the “angry young man” for Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan in the 1970s, reflecting the angst of the average Indian. In choosing to be the ordinary man’s “hero” as opposed to a thespian in new Bollywood, Salman Khan remains tightly linked to his father’s oeuvre. Thanks dad.
Three-day coronation
Royal purification
The entire coronation ceremony extends over three days from May 4-6, but Saturday is the one to watch. At the time of 10:09am the royal purification ceremony begins. Wearing a white robe, the king will enter a pavilion at the Grand Palace, where he will be doused in sacred water from five rivers and four ponds in Thailand. In the distant past water was collected from specific rivers in India, reflecting the influential blend of Hindu and Buddhist cosmology on the coronation. Hindu Brahmins and the country's most senior Buddhist monks will be present. Coronation practices can be traced back thousands of years to ancient India.
The crown
Not long after royal purification rites, the king proceeds to the Baisal Daksin Throne Hall where he receives sacred water from eight directions. Symbolically that means he has received legitimacy from all directions of the kingdom. He ascends the Bhadrapitha Throne, where in regal robes he sits under a Nine-Tiered Umbrella of State. Brahmins will hand the monarch the royal regalia, including a wooden sceptre inlaid with gold, a precious stone-encrusted sword believed to have been found in a lake in northern Cambodia, slippers, and a whisk made from yak's hair.
The Great Crown of Victory is the centrepiece. Tiered, gold and weighing 7.3 kilograms, it has a diamond from India at the top. Vajiralongkorn will personally place the crown on his own head and then issues his first royal command.
The audience
On Saturday afternoon, the newly-crowned king is set to grant a "grand audience" to members of the royal family, the privy council, the cabinet and senior officials. Two hours later the king will visit the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, the most sacred space in Thailand, which on normal days is thronged with tourists. He then symbolically moves into the Royal Residence.
The procession
The main element of Sunday's ceremonies, streets across Bangkok's historic heart have been blocked off in preparation for this moment. The king will sit on a royal palanquin carried by soldiers dressed in colourful traditional garb. A 21-gun salute will start the procession. Some 200,000 people are expected to line the seven-kilometre route around the city.
Meet the people
On the last day of the ceremony Rama X will appear on the balcony of Suddhaisavarya Prasad Hall in the Grand Palace at 4:30pm "to receive the good wishes of the people". An hour later, diplomats will be given an audience at the Grand Palace. This is the only time during the ceremony that representatives of foreign governments will greet the king.
Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5