India’s Rohan Bopanna and his men’s doubles partner Matthew Ebden of Australia have reached the final of the Australian Open 2024 afyer a hard fought semifinal win. The seasoned pair defeated the French-Dutch combination of Nicolas Mahut and Matwe Middelkoop 6-3, 6-7(3), 6-4 in a thriller that lasted two hours and 11 minutes.
The unseeded Bopanna-Ebden duo displayed tremendous resilience and character to overcome their higher seeded opponents. After capturing the opening set with ease, they faced a tough challenge in the second set tiebreaker which they narrowly lost. However, the experience of the 42-year-old Bopanna and 38-year-old Ebden shone through as they raised their game in the final set to book a place in the summit clash.
For Bopanna, this will be his fourth men’s doubles final at a Grand Slam tournament. He had previously reached the finals of the 2010 US Open, 2014 French Open and 2017 French Open partnering different players. But a title has eluded him so far and he will be hoping that the experience of playing multiple finals comes in handy when he faces the winner of the second semifinal between the top seeds Rajeev Ram-Joe Salisbury and the Australian wildcard pairing of Jason Kubler-John Peers.
Sunday’s final will be the veteran Indian’s 58th Grand Slam in men’s doubles discipline reflecting his two decades of excellence and consistency at the highest level. Despite his advancing age, Bopanna continues to successfully combine hisnimble footwork, strong serve and exceptional court coverage with different partners. His understanding with Ebden has grown from strength to strength which was again on display during some spectacular rally point in the hard fought semifinal.
For Ebden, this is his second Grand Slam men’s doubles final having finished runner-up at the 2013 US Open alongside Jamie Murray. The experienced Aussie is still chasing his first major title and pairing up with an equally determined Bopanna makes them a dangerous combination on their day. Their all-round skills were in full cry during the come-from-behind victory against Mahut and Middelkoop.
The women’s doubles final between Elise Mertens-Zhang Shuai and Barbora Krejcikova-Katerina Siniakova will precede the eagerly anticipated men’s doubles title clash on Rod Laver Arena. Fans will be hoping that the veteran Indian is able to go one step further this time and win the coveted Australian Open doubles title eluding him so far. With Ebden by his side, Bopanna will back himself to finally get over the line in his fourth Grand Slam final on Sunday evening.
