Tennis
Rohan Bopanna/Mathew Ebden finish runner up at ATP 250 Adelaide
The Indo-Australian pair lost to Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury in the final to start 2024 with a runner-up finish.
Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden (Source: ESPN India)
Indian tennis star Rohan Bopanna started his 2024 with a runner-up finish at the ATP 250 Adelaide International in Australia on Saturday with his Australian partner Matthew Ebden.
Seeded second in the tournament, the Indo-Australian pair lost to familiar opponents in third seeds Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury. The match ended 5-7, 7-5, 9-11 in favour of Ram and Salisbury.
Bopanna/Ebden lost to the same pair in the final of the 2023 US Open.
Handed walkover in the first round, Bopanna and Ebden defeated the South American team of Colombian Nicolas Barrientos and Brazil’s Rafael Matos 6-2, 6-7(4), 10-7 in the quarter-final.
Later in the semi-final, the Bopanna-Ebden duo defeated the pair of Gonzalo Escobar (Ecuador) and Aleksandr Nedovyesov (Ukraine) 6-4 6-4 in the semifinal match that lasted one hour and 12 minutes.
The 43-year-old Bopanna and Ebden first teamed up at the start of the 2023 season and enjoyed an impressive year together, winning tour-level trophies in Doha and Indian Wells.
Bopanna is the only active Grand Slam winner from India after Sania Mirza retired in 2023. The 43-year-old along with Rutuja Bhosale won the gold medal in the mixed doubles event at the Asian Games 2023 in Hangzhou.
Bopanna also announced his retirement from the Indian Davis Cup team playing his last tie in Lucknow against Morocco.
