ATP Finals: Rohan Bopanna-Matthew Ebden fall to top-seeds Arevalo and Pavic

Turin (Italy): Marcelo Arevalo and Mate Pavic overcame their defeat in the opener to claim a crucial victory at the ATP Finals, defeating Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden 7-5, 6-3 in a pivotal round-robin clash on Wednesday. The win keeps the top-seeded duo’s hopes alive of advancing to the knockout rounds. Arevalo and Pavic, riding a powerful mid-match surge in which they won 15 consecutive points, wrapped up the 68-minute match in style. “I think we had to give it our all today; this was the match to [essentially] stay in the tournament,” Arevalo said. “Anything can happen, and we know that. Today, we put in extra energy. Mate and I decided to go out there and give our best. We were lucky to execute in the important moments and finally, we ended up getting the win.” The Salvadoran-Croatian pair, now 1-1 in the Bob Bryan Group, will next face Italian favourites Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori in their final group match. A win there would improve their chances of reaching the knockout stages and becoming the first top-seeded duo to win the event since the Bryan brothers in 2014. “It’s good to get a win; we actually haven’t won a match since the US Open,” Pavic said. “It’s something we are not used to at this level [losing five straight matches], but it can happen; everybody is playing well. We are very happy to have turned it around and got the win today. Hopefully, we can go out there on Friday and play a good match.” The win also bolstered their pursuit of the ATP Year-End Doubles No. 1 ranking, with Arevalo and Pavic 410 points ahead of rivals Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos, who are 0-2 in the Mike Bryan Group. Bopanna and Ebden, who are ending their two-year partnership after the Finals, initially held the momentum with a break lead but faltered with two double faults in a tense 12th game. Arevalo and Pavic capitalized, winning nine of 12 first-serve points as they closed out the match. –IANS