Masters of all: Bopanna and Ebden win second Masters 1000 title, return to world No. 1

Miami, March 31

Ace Indian tennis player Rohan Bopanna rewrote his own record after clinching the men’s doubles crown at the Miami Open here.

Continuing their fine run this year, the 44-year-old Bopanna and Australia’s Matt Ebden fought back from a set down to pull off an exhilarating 6-7(3) 6-3 10-6 win over Croatia’s Ivan Dodig and USA’s Austin Krajicek in the final on Saturday.

With the win, Bopanna surpassed his record of becoming the oldest ATP Masters 1000 champion created last year when he won the Indian Wells title at the age of 43. He also reclaimed the top spot in the doubles rankings.

“It’s amazing. As long as you are doing well in these big events, it’s what you play for,” Bopanna said. “I want to do well in the Masters 1000s and the Grand Slams. It’s good to keep that record going and keep giving everyone else a run for their money,” added Bopanna, who won his maiden doubles Grand Slam title at the Australian Open earlier this year.

This was Bopanna’s 14th ATP Masters 1000 final. Overall, it was the veteran Indian player’s 63rd ATP Tour level final and 26th doubles title. Bopanna also achieved a rare feat as he became the second Indian after Leander Paes to reach the final of all nine ATP Masters events.

Bopanna and Ebden, the top seeds for the tournament, tapped into their deep reservoir of experience to fetch the final six points of the summit clash. They had three set points on serve at 6-5 in the opener but their second-seeded opponents warded off all three to force a tiebreaker before taking a 1-0 lead.

“It’s tough. These guys, they fight back in tough moments,” said Ebden. “Last time we played them it was similar, it’s a bit of a seesaw. 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,” he added.

Bopanna and Ebden then staged a comeback as they broke their opponent early in the second set. Like the opening two sets, the tiebreaker was also fought on an even keel with the reigning Australian Open champions emerging victorious.

Following the Australian Open triumph, Bopanna climbed to the world No. 1 spot in the ATP rankings, becoming the oldest player to do so. But he slipped to the second spot after a quarterfinal loss at the Dubai Championships and a Round of 32 exit at the Indian Wells Masters. But with this win, the pair will be back to the top spot. — PTI

Collins wins maiden Masters 1000 to achieve farewell season goal

American Danielle Collins said she has achieved the goal she set herself for her final season on the WTA Tour by winning her first Masters 1000 title at the Miami Open on Saturday. The 30-year-old overcame fourth seed Elena Rybakina in just over two hours to become the sixth American woman to claim the crown in Miami. “…because it is my last year, I really wanted to try to win a Masters 1000 this year,” Collins said after winning the third WTA title of her career.

The former Australian Open runner-up announced in January she would be quitting the sport in 2024 and that she hoped to start a family. Asked if she was reconsidering those plans, Collins said: “No, I’m not. I feel like all of these questions are coming from such a good place, because I feel like a lot of people would like to continue seeing me play well.” reuters