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Bopanna-Ebden win Miami Open Masters 1000 crown

March 31, 2024 10:07 IST

India's Rohan Bopanna and Australia's Matthew Ebden

IMAGE: India's Rohan Bopanna and Australia's Matthew Ebden consolidated their position atop the ATP doubles rankings following their Miami Open triumph. Photograph: Ciro De Luca/Reuters

India's Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden battled from the brink to get the better of Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek and win the Miami Open doubles crown at Hard Rock Stadium on Saturday night.

The pair reeled off the final six points of the championship match for a 6-7(3), 6-3, 10-6 victory.

 

The Indo-Australian pair frittered away three set points on serve at 6-5 in the opening set but rallied splendidly in the contest between the top two seeded teams to take the crown.

“It’s tough. These guys, they fight back in tough moments,” said Ebden after the 103-minute triumph.

“Last time we played them it was similar; it’s a bit of a see-saw. They return so well, make so many balls and we missed one or two shots when we were up (at the end of) the first set. They played a great tie-break, and then we just reset.

“We just tried a different method. We just relaxed and let ourselves play, and just saw what happened. It turned out well.”

The victory saw the Australian Open champions improve to 14-3 for the 2024 season.

The Miami title is their second at the ATP Masters 1000 level after their 2023 title run in Indian Wells; it consolidated their position in first place in the ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings.