Rohan Bopanna scripts history, assured World No. 1 rank with semifinal appearance at the Australian Open

Rohan Bopanna, one of India's most decorated tennis players, has scripted history again. Playing on court 3 of the Rod Laver Arena, Bopanna breezed past his quarterfinal opponents alongside doubles partner Matthew Ebden, assuring himself of the World No. 1 rank when the updated list is released on Monday.

This makes the 43-year-old the oldest first-time World No. 1 in ATP men's doubles ranking. Notably, Boppana, who is making his 17th consecutive appearance in Melbourne, has made it past the third round of the Australian Open for the first time.

Rohan Bopanna has been achieving historic feats of late. He finished as the runner-up at the US Open 2023, becoming the oldest man to make it to a Grand Slam final in the Open Era. With this final-four appearance in Australia, the Indian has also accomplished the feat of making it to the semifinals of all four Grand Slams.

Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden to face unseeded opponents in their semifinals

Rohan Bopanna has another opportunity to make history. If the Indian manages to clinch wins in his next two matches, he will become the oldest player to win a Grand Slam men's doubles title.

Standing in his and Ebden’s way is the unseeded pair of China's Zhang Zhizhen and Czech Republic's Tomáš Macháč. So far, Bopanna and Ebden have had a dream run at the Australian Open, claiming dominant victories. In their quarterfinal match, the duo got the better of Argentina’s Máximo González and Andrés Molteni with a score of 6-4, 7-6(5).

Meanwhile, Zhizhen and Macháč have also put up some strong performances in their run to the semifinals. The pair beat Ariel Behar and Adam Pavlásek 6-3, 6-1, in their quarterfinal match to make it to the final four.

If Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden make it to the finals, they will either face Germans Yannick Hanfmann/Dominik Koepfer or Kevin Krawietz/Tim Puetz, or Italians Simone Bolelli/Andrea Vavassori.

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