WATCH: Rohan Bopanna stands at the brink of legacy as Matt Ebden’s powershot reaches “new heights” at the 2024 Australian Open finals

Matthew Ebden creates a moment of magic during the 2024 Australian Open Men's Doubles finals as he fights alongside Rohan Bopanna for the title.

WATCH: Rohan Bopanna stands at the brink of legacy as Matt Ebden’s powershot reaches “new heights” at the 2024 Australian Open finals

Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden (Credits: Australian Open's Twitter, Sporting News)

Indian fans continue to remain glued to the action at Melbourne Park as the legendary Rohan Bopanna fights for the title at the 2024 Australian Open. After Sumit Nagal’s first-round heroics, the Indians had a vested interest in the ongoing Grand Slam. The interest has only been extended by some Bopanna magic.

The 43-year-old veteran, along with partner and local lad Matthew Ebden, are seeded second at the Major. They have survived some tricky battles to make their way to the finals as both eye their maiden title in Australia. 

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While Ebden did win the 2022 Wimbledon men’s doubles, Bopanna is yet to win a Major in this discipline. The only Grand Slam title the Indian ace has won came at the 2017 French Open, where he partnered Gabriela Dabrowski to win the Mixed Doubles. 

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Ebden and Bopanna are facing the all-Italian pair of Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori in the finals at Melbourne Park. The match commenced after the conclusion of the women’s singles, where Aryna Sabalenka successfully defended her title against Qinwen Zheng. 

With some crowd support coming in for the local lad, Ebden, he produced a moment of magic midway through the first set. Serving in the seventh game with the set locked in at 3-3, Ebden executed a precise and sweet lob on just the fourth shot of the point. 

Vavassori despite jumping failed to connect as the lob landed just inside the baseline to give the Indo-Aus pair another point.

Matthew Ebden and Rohan Bopanna play a flawless tiebreaker to win the first set

Neither of the teams conceded a single break point in the first set, despite some good points contested. As a result, there was no other choice than a tiebreaker to be played to determine the winner of the first set. 

Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden
Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden (Source: Imago)

Bopanna’s service started the tiebreaker, and the Indo-Aus pair did not concede a single point in the tiebreaker. They won seven straight points to win the tiebreaker and the first set. As a result, they take the lead in the finals, with the trophy only one set away from the pair. 

Irrespective of the result, Bopanna is assured of becoming the new World No. 1. Ebden will also rise in ranking, having previously been ranked as high as World No. 4. A career-high rank for both men will be extra sweet if they also manage to win their first major title together. 

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