Exclusive: “It would be a tough match playing two Americans at home” – Bhambri on US Open first round
India’s No. 2 ranked doubles player Yuki Bhambri and partner Albano Olivetti will begin their US Open campaign against American wildcards Ryan Seggerman/ Patrik Trhac in the first round. Coming into the final Grand Slam of the season ranked a career-high No. 48 in the world, Bhambri will be playing his first match in nearly a month when he takes to the court at Flushing Meadows. In the absence of matches, Bhambri and Olivetti have been putting hard work on the practice courts. “The only reason we ended up playing one tournament (Washington) during the hardcourt stretch is because we did not get into the other events. The Masters in Cincinnati and Montreal, the cut-offs were too high so we did not get in and the same in Winston-Salem. We had a good training week on the hardcourts though and are now looking forward to playing the rest of the season, starting with the US Open,” Bhambri said speaking exclusively to The Sportz Planet. Bhambri and Olivetti have never played Seggerman/ Trhac before but the Indian is aware that it will be a tough assignment. “Never played them before. This is the first time. From what I’ve read about them, they have been playing mostly on the ATP Challenger Tour but obviously they are top 100 doubles players so they must be good. I’m sure it would be a tough match playing two Americans at home. We are definitely going to try and prepare well and put our best foot forward,” he added. “Definitely a positive sign for Indian doubles going forward” – Yuki Bhambri Bhambri was one of four Indians to feature in the men’s doubles draw when it was released – the second Grand Slam in a row with such a high representation for India (Sumit Nagal has since had to pull out after his partner Yoshihito Nishioka retired from his first-round singles match and withdrew from the doubles as well). The 32-year-old described this as a positive sign for Indian tennis and is confident that the numbers will go up in the future. “I’m sure we are going to see more and more Indians on the doubles draws as well. It’s no coincidence that due to the support the Doubles Dream of India has been providing that a lot of our players have been doing well and reaching career-highs and I’m sure the number will increase from four in the future as well. Definitely a positive sign for Indian doubles going forward,” the Indian commented. Bhambri’s first round match at the US Open will take place on Wednesday or Thursday this week. The Sportz Planet Desk,Haresh Ramchandani
