Rohan Bopanna-Adam Pavlasek win first round match in men’s doubles

Indian tennis player Rohan Bopanna and his partner Adam Pavlasek of Czechia progressed to the second round of the French Open 2025 after a 7(8)-6(6), 5-7, 6-1 win against the American duo of Robert Cash and James Tracy on Wednesday.

The Indo-Czech tennis duo had an early opportunity to seize control but couldn’t convert a break point in the fourth game and were broken themselves in the 11th.

However, they showed resilience by immediately breaking back to push the first set into a tie-break, which they edged 8-6.

The second set followed a similar pattern with both pairs holding serve through a tense battle. Bopanna and Pavlasek had break chances in the seventh and 11th games but failed to capitalise.

It proved to be costly as Cash and Tracy broke Pavlasek’s serve in the 12th game to take the match into a third set.

The deciding set witnessed Bopanna and Pavlasek earn break points in the third and fifth games en route to victory and a spot in the next round.

India’s No. 1 doubles player Yuki Bhambri and his partner Robert Galloway of the United States of America were made to work hard but won their first round match 6-3, 6 (8)-6(10), 6-3 against the Netherlands’ Robin Haase and Germany’s Hendrik Jebens.

Bhambri and Galloway started strong, dominating the first set with consistent first serves, well-executed volleys and solid strokes from the back of the court. A crucial break of Haase’s serve in the sixth game allowed them to take the opener 6-3.

The second set proved to be a tighter affair with both pairs holding serve throughout. In the tie-break, the Indo-American duo had a match point at 8-7 but couldn’t convert as Haase and Jebens rallied to claim it 10-8 and force a decider.

Regrouping swiftly, Bhambri and Galloway raised their level in the final set, breaking Jebens in the fourth game and holding serve confidently thereafter to close out the match and advance to the next round.

N Sriram Balaji and his Mexican partner Miguel Ángel Reyes-Varela also advanced to the second round after a straightforward 6-2, 6-1 win over Argentina’s Camilo Ugo Carabelli and Yunchaokete Bu of the People’s Republic of China.

Meanwhile, Rithvik Bollipalli’s quest for his maiden win in the main draw of a Grand Slam continued after he and his Colombian partner Nicolas Barrientos were ousted in the first round of the French Open.

The Indo-Colombian pair endured a tough outing against Canada’s Gabriel Diallo and Great Britain’s Jacob Fearnley, struggling with their serves as well as returns before losing the match 6-0, 6-2 in 56 minutes.

Click here to read article