Keeping India’s campaign in the Australian Open alive veteran Leander Paes reached the second round with partner Jelena Ostapenko while Rohan Bopanna progressed to the quarter-finals with his Ukranian partner Nadiia Kichenok in the mixed doubles category.
Paes and Ostapenko, the 2017 French Open champion, erased a one-set deficit to edge out local wild cards entrants Storm Sanders and Marc Polmans 6-7(4), 6-3, 10-6 in the opening round which lasted one hour and 27 minutes.
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Paes is competing in his last Australian Open, having announced that 2020 is his final year on the Pro circuit.
They will next face American Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Briton Jamie Murray, who knocked out top seeds Marcelo Melo and Barbora Strycova 3-6, 6-4, 10-7 in their opening round.
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Bopanna and Kichenok defeated the team of Nicole Melichar and Bruno Soares 6-4, 7-6(4) in their second round.
Bopanna was supposed to pair up with compatriot Sania Mirza but the latter pulled out due to a calf injury.
(With inputs from agencies)
