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Chennai Open: Rohan Bopanna enters doubles final, sets up clash with Sharan-Raja
Rohan Bopanna, along with partner Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan, entered the final of the Chennai Open to set-up a clash with Divij Sharan and Purav Raja.
The Chennai Open doubles trophy will remain at home. That’s what Rohan Bopanna and Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan ensured on Saturday evening. The unseeded Indians played an absolute solid game right from the first point to defeat fourth-seeded American-Kiwi pair of Nicholas Monroe and Artem Sitak 7-6(3), 6-4 to set up a blockbuster Sunday finale against compatriots Divij Sharan and Purav Raja.
For the first time, an ATP 250 event will see two Indian teams contesting a final and also one of them winning at the SDAT stadium since Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi triumphed in 2011. For the statistically minded, Sharan and Raja will be playing in their third ATP event final as a team, while Bopanna and Jeevan are playing together only for the second time.
Bopanna took the lead while Jeevan didn’t let his teammate down. While Bopanna’s angles and down-the-middle serves left the opponents fumbling, Jeevan held his own and hit crucial winners in the semifinal tie. His serves too, were on point.
As an unforced error by Monroe handed the Indians a match point in the hard-fought second set, a second error saw them celebrate as the home crowd wildly applauded.
Come Sunday, not only will the final ensure a great match but also, a win for India.
