Asian Games: Rohan Bopanna, Yuki Bhambri crash out of men's doubles competition

Hangzhou, Sep 25 (IANS) A few days after helping India to victory in the Davis Cup World Group II playoff against Morocco in Lucknow, India's Rohan Bopanna and Yuki Bhambri crashed out of the Asian Games men's doubles competition, losing out in the second round to an Uzbekistan pair.

Playing at the Centre Court in the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Centre Tennis Centre, Bopanna and Bhambri, who had a bye in the first round, went down 6-2, 3-6 (6-10) to Uzbekistan's Sergey Fomin and Khumoyun Sultanov.

With Bopanna, who won gold in men's doubles in Jakarta in the 2018 Asian Games with Divij Sharan, in great form having reached the finals of the US Open men's doubles earlier this month, the top Indian pair was expected to cruise through the opening round but they found the going tough from the second set onwards.

The 43-year-old Bopanna is ranked seventh in the World in doubles ranking and Yuki is 65th while Fomin is 349th in doubles and his partner Sultanov is ranked 494th. On paper, the Indians were expected to brush aside their rivals and reach

But the Uzbek pair put up a superb fight and overcame the Indians, who struggled with their serve and even served six double faults as against none by the Uzbekistan pair.

Bopanna-Bhambri managed to put in 65% of their serve while their rivals managed to serve 75%. The Indians broke the serve of their opponents in the first game as they led 2-0 and though the Uzbekistan pair broke back soon to make it 2-2, Bopanna and Bhambri grabbed the initiative again and went on to win the next four games to win the first set 6-2.

In the second set, the Uzbekistan pair broke serve in the fourth game to go 3-1 up and though the Indians broke back immediately and levelled scores at 3-3, their opponents won the next three games to win the set 6-3 and force a match tie-breaker.

They opened a 3-0 lead in the Match Tie-break and extended it to 6-2, going on to win it 10-6 and stun their experienced opponents from India.

Bopanna, who is partnering Rutuja Bhosale in the mixed doubles competition here, is scheduled to meet Uzbekistan's Akgul Amanmuradova and Maksim Shin in a second-round match later in the day.