The third seeds Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden
progressed to the semifinals of the ATP as they produced a strong performance
to overcome Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski 6-4, 7-6(5) in a Red Group
qualification decider in Turin on Friday.
The Indo-Australian duo registered a second successive
victory confirming a top-two finish in the Red Group. They are now awaiting the
outcome of the Rajeev Ram-Joe Salisbury vs Jason Kubler-Rinky Hijikata match to
determine their group standing and opponents for the upcoming semi-final match.
Bopanna-Ebden jumped out to an early lead, nearly
breaking the tie in the first game. The Dutch-British combination came back
from a 40-point deficit to win the game and take a 1-0 lead in the first set.
The two teams maintained their respective serves until
the sixth game of the first set. Following that, Bopanna-Ebden broke the
opponents’ serve at love for the match’s first and only successful break.
With a 4-3 lead, the Indo-Australian pair won the
first set 6-4 in 33 minutes, thanks to some excellent net play from both sides.
In the fiercely contested second set, the two sides
continued to hold their serves in order to force a tie-break. With the set tied
at 6-6, Rohan Bopanna blasted an accurate backhand deep in his opponent’s half
while receiving the serve to get the tie-breaker off on the right foot.
When Koolhof-Skupski led 4-2 in the first part of the
tie-break, Bopanna-Ebden came back to seal the victory in straight sets.
Earlier this week, Bopanna (43) became the tournament’s
oldest player to win a match. The Indian-Australian duo originally paired up at
the start of the season and have had a successful year, winning tour-level
championships in Doha and Indian Wells. Bopanna is returning to the year-end
event for the fourth time, while Ebden is making his debut.
Year-End ATP Doubles No. 1 honours are still available
for Bopanna and Ebden. They must reach the final in Turin to overtake Dodig and
Krajicek, who have already been eliminated. Koolhof and Skupski cannot end the
season as the top two.
ANI
