Paris Masters: Rohan Bopanna-Matthew Ebden to play men's doubles final, win guarantees top ATP ranking
Rohan Bopanna continued his stellar form in 2023 on Saturday, November 4, after entering the men's doubles final at the Paris Masters, an annual professional ATP 1000 tournament for male players.
Paring with Australia's Matthew Ebden in the semi-finals, Bopanna defeated Harri Heliovaaara (Finland) and Mate Pavic (Croatia) in straight games 6-7 (3), 6-4 (10-6), though involving a lot of intensity in the 89-minute battle.
The third-seeded Bopanna and Ebden managed to get past the pair who defeated top seeds Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek in straight sets in the quarterfinals. The Indian-Australian pair won 88 percent of their points from first serve - 46 out of 52.
Bopanna and Ebden got a walkover in the pre-quarters from the Serbian pair of Novak Djokovic and Miomir Kecmanovic before they rallied past Argentina's Horacio Zeballos and Spain's Marcel Granollers 6-3, 6-2 in quarterfinals.
The current ATP third-ranked pair will face Santiago Gonzalez (Mexico) and Edouard Roger-Vassein (France) in the final on Sunday at the Centre Court, with the match expected to start at 5 PM (Indian Standard Time). Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden can surpass Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek in the top spot by 60 points if they lift the Paris Masters title.
Rohan Bopanna's 2023 campaign in a nutshell
Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden started their partnership in men's doubles at the start of the 2023 season. The pair have fiercely competed in major competitions, bagging the Indian Wells title in March. It was Rohan's fifth Masters title which made the 43-year-old the oldest winner of the ATP Masters 1000.
The Indian-Australian duo reached the US Open men's doubles final, where they lost to Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury. In September, Rohan Bopanna announced retirement from the prestigious Davis Cup after playing the tournament for two decades. He later won a gold medal in the mixed doubles event along with Rutuja Bhosale at the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou.