Indian-Australian duo wins Match Tie-break to survive
The Indian-Australian duo ousted eighth seeds Santiago Gonzalez and Edouard Roger-Vasselin 5-7, 7-6(3), 10-4 in the last four of the Mutua Madrid Open. In the Match Tie-break, Bopanna and Ebden won four of seven return points to book their ticket into Saturday’s final.
Bopanna and Ebden, seeded seventh, are aiming for their third title of the season (Doha, Indian Wells). Their strong start to the season has lifted them to No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings. Bopanna and Ebden will next meet Marcelo Arevalo and Jean-Julien Rojer or Karen Khachanov and Andrey Rublev.
Gonzalez and Roger-Vasselin have won titles in Marseille and Miami this season. Their last two losses have come to Bopanna and Ebden, having suffered a defeat to the team in Barcelona.