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Indian Tennis: Bopanna - Shapovalov oust top seeds, advance to quarters of Italian Open
Indo-Canadian tennis pair Rohan Bopanna and Denis Shapovalov beat top seeded Columbian duo Robert Farah and Juan Sebastian Cabal in three sets to advance to the quarters of men’s doubles of the Italian Open 2020 (ATP masters 1000).
The unseeded Indo-Canadian pairing, who reached the quarters of the US Open earlier this month, had a massive task on their hands. Farah and Cabal are currently ranked 1-2 in the ATP Doubles Rankings and are among the strongest pairs on the circuit. In fact, the two-time Grand Slam champions had won the previous two editions of the Italian Open doubles event together.
#Breaking: The pair of 🇮🇳 @rohanbopanna and 🇨🇦 @denis_shapo enter the "Last-8" at #IBI20.
They ousted the top seeds @RobertFarah_ and @juanscabal of 🇨🇴 in a tie-breaker during their Round of 16 match.#AITATennis 🇮🇳🎾 pic.twitter.com/Y33lMLbsaF
— All India Tennis Association (@AITA__Tennis) September 17, 2020
However, on Thursday, it was Bopanna and Shapovalov who had the last laugh. The duo was on song right from the outset as they got a break in the first set and quickly converted it into a 1-0 lead in the 3-setter, winning 6-3.
But Farah and Cabal hit back in the second set, demonstrating the excellent understanding between them, and drew level. Bopanna and Shapovalov couldn’t do much to avoid letting the match go into the decider as the Columbians wrapped it up 6-3 in their favour.
Indo-Canadian pair Rohan Bopanna and Denis Shapovalov beat top seed pair in three sets to advance to the quarters of the Italian Open.
The deciding was a tightly contested affair with both teams avoiding silly mistakes. In the end, Bopanna and Shapovalov won it 10-5 to seal the match and progress to the quarters.
Earlier, Bopanna and Shapovalov had beaten Argentina’s Guido Pella and Chile’s Cristian Garin 6-4, 6-4 to move into the round of 16 at the Italian Open 2020.
Also read: The first indian woman to win a Grand Slam match : The journey of Nirupama Sanjeev
