Australian Open 2024: Rohan Bopanna-Matthew Ebden's duo storms into third round after thrashing local pair in straight sets

The second-seeded Indo-Australian duo of Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden advanced effortlessly to the men's doubles third round of the Australian Open on Friday, January 19, securing a straight-sets win over the local pair of John Millman and Edward Winter. Competing in a second-round match at Court 3, Bopanna and Ebden comfortably defeated the wildcard entrants 6-2, 6-4 in just over an hour.

The pair, particularly highlighted by the 43-year-old Bopanna and Ebden, displayed dominance across all facets of the game. They achieved an impressive 80 percent success rate on their first serve, compared to Millman and Winter's 68 percent.

Notably, the duo also delivered the match's fastest serve, clocking in at 203 kmph, and executed 17 winners, outperforming their opponents who managed 11.

In their first-round match on Thursday, Bopanna and Ebden, who were finalists at the 2023 US Open, triumphed over another Australian team, James Duckworth and Marc Polmans, with a scoreline of 7-6 (7), 6-4, 7-6 (10).

In the upcoming third round, the pair of Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden is set to compete against the 14th seeded Dutch-Croatian team comprising Wesley Koolhof and Nikola Mektic.

In other news, another Indian player, Sriram Balaji, alongside his Romanian partner Victor Cornea, progressed to the second round of the Australian Open men’s doubles. The Balaji-Cornea team secured their spot by defeating the Italian pair of Matteo Arnaldi and Andrea Pellegrino with a score of 6-3, 6-4 in the opening round.

However, the representation of India in the singles category at this season's first Grand Slam concluded on Thursday, following Sumit Nagal's second-round defeat to China's Juncheng Shang.

MORE ON SPORTS TAK: 

Big resignations shake up Pakistan Cricket ahead of 4th T20I against New Zealand

NZ vs PAK: Daryl Mitchell-Glenn Phillips combine to bulldoze Pakistan by 7 wickets as Mohammad Rizwan's heroics go in vain

Virat Kohli or Sachin Tendulkar? R Ashwin announces 'greatest batter to ever grace the game'

After Sachin, Dhoni and Kohli, another Indian cricket star receives invite for Ram temple 'Pran Pratishtha' ceremony

Virat Kohli, Anushka Sharma receive invitation for 'Pran Pratishtha' ceremony of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya
Hardik Pandya or Shivam Dube or both? India's World Cup winner answers burning question of which all-rounder should be part of India's T20 WC squad