Maharashtra Open | India's Rohan Bopanna to headline doubles challenge
The Netherlands' Botic van de Zandschulp will join Indian tennis player Rohan Bopanna in the doubles section of the Maharashtra Open 2023, which begins on December 31 in Pune. At world No. 19, Bopanna is India's top-ranked doubles player, while Botic van de Zandschulp is ranked 35th in the world.
The pair will be seeded second at the Maharashtra Open, South Asia's only ATP 250 tennis tournament, behind two-time US Open champions Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury. Last year, Rohan Bopanna and Ramkumar Ramanathan won the Maharashtra Open 2022 doubles championship after coming back from a set down against top seeds Luke Saville and John-Patrick Smith of Australia. However, for this season, the two Indian players have partnered up with other partners.
For the competition, Ramkumar Ramanathan will team up with Miguel Angel Reyes-Varela of Mexico. With a combined team rating of seven, top seeds Rajeev Ram of the United States and Joe Salisbury of the United Kingdom made the cut for the Maharashtra Open. Earlier last year, the American-British duo successfully defended their US Open championship and also won two ATP Masters 1000 titles. They finished the year by winning the ATP Finals in Turin.
Other noteworthy international players who have gained direct admission in doubles at the Maharashtra Open 2023 include Nathaniel Lammons and Jackson Withrow. The American duo just won their first ATP Tour doubles victory in San Diego at the 2022 Southern California Open.
Along with the French team of Sadio Doumbia and Fabien Reboul, Sander Gille, a former world number 24, and Joran Vliegen, a former world number 28, are also competing. The doubles draw will feature Saketh Myneni and Yuki Bhambri together. In 2022, the Indian duo swept the ATP Challenger Tour with six victories.
Two yet-to-be-announced wild card entrants will be included in the 16-team doubles draw. At the Maharashtra Open, former US Open tennis champion Marin Cilic of Croatia will be the main attraction. The fifth iteration of the tennis competition, the Maharashtra Open 2023, will end on January 7.