French Open 2021: Rohan Bopanna/Franko Skugor book a Quarter Final slot, will face Spanish duo
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Rohan Bopanna and Franko Skugor
The pairing of Indian veteran Rohan Bopanna and Croat Franko Skugor enter into the quarter final of the 2021 French Open after the pair of Matwe Middelkoop and Marcelo Arevalo pulled out of their third round match, handing the Indo-Croat duo a walkover.
This will be Rohan Bopanna’s first grand slam quarterfinal appearance since the US Open last year. Bopanna needs to earn points to improve his rankings. The final rankings on June 14 will be considered for entry into the Tokyo Olympics.
After the top seeds, Mate Pavic and Nikola Mektic pulled out of the tournament at the last minute, the top half of the draw has opened up, giving a great chance to Bopanna/Skugor to make it deep into the tournament. They had two good wins in the initial rounds, defeating Andre Begemann/Nikoloz Basilashvili in the first round and Frances Tiafoe/Nicholas Monroe in the second.
Bopanna/Skugor to face Andujar/Martinez in the Quarterfinal
Bopanna and Skugor will now take on the Spanish pair of Pablo Andujar and Pedro Martinez in the quarterfinals on Monday on Court 14. The Spanish duo were inserted into the main draw at the last moment after the top seeds, Pavic and Mektic pulled out.
Both the Spanish players aren’t Doubles specialist and mostly focus on Singles. This should give Bopanna and Skugor and added advantage. But the Indo-Croat pairing is also a fairly new one. They have played just two tournaments together coming into the French Open and didn’t win a match in any one of those.
But the pair seemed to have bonded well and are coming in sync at the right moment. Bopanna is a great server and has amazing hand skills around the net. His experience over the years adds value to his elite resume too. This will be a golden opportunity for Bopanna and Skugor and they will be the favorites to win the match and march into the semi-finals.
Prediction: Bopanna/Skugor to win in three sets.
Also read: The wait continues: Serena Williams bows out of the French Open 2021
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Lakshya Chopra
(2595 Articles Published)