N Sriram Balaji was easily tamed by Elias Ymer while Ramkumar Ramanathan lacked the killer instinct even against a lower-ranked Leo Borg as India were left trailing 0-2 against Sweden in the Davis Cup World Group I tie, on Saturday.
Balaji, who is a doubles specialist, found the going tough against Ymer, who raced to a 6-4 6-2 win in the opening singles. Ramkumar, who is a seasoned Davis Cupper now, was expected to bring India back into the tie but he lost to 603-ranked Borg, son of the legendary Bjorn Borg 3-6 3-6, in the second singles at the Royal Tennis Hall.
India were forced to field Balaji in singles as the country's top singles player Sumit Nagal opted out of the tie due to a back injury.
While Balaji did the job against Pakistan, playing someone of the calibre of Ymer was always going to be a tough task. The onus to win a point for India on the opening day was on Ramkumar.