Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden brought their best service games to the fore as they sealed their place in the men’s doubles final beating second seeds Zhang Zhizhen and Tomas Machac 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (10-7) in the semi-final.
Bopanna has been enjoying a second wind of sorts at the Australian Open along with his partner Ebden. The duo last reached the final of the US Open last year and seem to have picked up where they left off in Melbourne this year. The 43-year-old Bopanna has formed a formidable partnership with Ebden and the duo have been complimenting each other well.
The Indo-Australian duo’s chemistry was on display as they came out all guns blazing in the first set and sealed it 6-3. As expected, Zhang Zhizhen and Thomas Machac came back with vengeance in the second set as they broke Ebden’s serve in the fourth game of the second set. The Czech-Chinese duo then consolidated their position by breaking their opponent’s serve once again to take the second set 6-3.
The third set was an evenly matched contest between both pairs as they left everything on the court to secure a spot in the final. And their efforts were there for all to be seen as the set went into a tie-break. Thankfully, Bopanna and Ebden were able to hold their nerves as they took the tie-break 10-7. In the process of entering the final, Bopanna broke his record of being the oldest man at a Grand Slam final.
In the final, Bopanna and Ebden will take on the Italian pair of Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori.
