The top-seeded Indo-Australian pair of Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden suffered a first-round exit in the ATP Mutua Madrid Open after losing to American Sebastian Korda and Australian Jordan Thompson in Madrid.
Bopanna-Ebden, the runners-up in Madrid Open 2023, bowed out of the ongoing edition with a 7-6 (4), 7-5 defeat in a contest that lasted one hour and 17 minutes.
The pair were facing each other for the first time, and the American-Australian duo went toe-to-toe with Bopanna and Ebden, matching them shot for shot. Korda and Thompson showcased a formidable service game, successfully defending the only break point they conceded in the opening set.
To their merit, Bopanna and Ebden also prevented Korda and Thompson from capitalizing on three break points. Nonetheless, the latter seized the opportunity by clinching the set in a tie-breaker.
The American-Australian duo continued their momentum in the second set to win it 7-5 and take the match in straight sets. The top-seeded pair failed to apply any pressure, resulting in their premature exit from the clay campaign.
Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden have enjoyed an impressive run recently
Earlier, Bopanna and Ebden had a brilliant run in the Indian Wells Masters 2023, which helped the former become the oldest ATM Masters 1000 Champion. Moreover, the Indo-Australia pair made it to the doubles semi-finals at Wimbledon and the final of the US Open in the same season.
In 2024, Bopanna became the oldest player to reach the world number one ranking in doubles, courtesy of his Australian Open doubles triumph with Ebden. Unfortunately, he suffered a dip in the latest ATP Rankings released in April. Notably, Bopanna lost his World No. 1 rank to his doubles partner Matthew Ebden.
The duo recently suffered a defeat in the Round of 16 of Monte-Carlo Masters 2024 against Mate Pavic of Croatia and Marcelo Arevalo of El Salvador.
Before Monte-Carlo Masters 2024, the pair secured the Miami Open title in March, defeating Croatia’s Ivan Dodig and America’s Austin Krajicek 6-7(3), 6-3, 10-6 in the final.
