Marcelo Arevalo/Mate Pavic hold off Rohan Bopanna/Matthew Ebden for crucial win in Turin | ATP Tour
Matching Report
Arevalo/Pavic edge Bopanna/Ebden for crucial win in Turin
The top seed moves to 1-1 in the Bob Bryan Group
November 13, 2024
Corinne Dubreuil/ATP Tour
Mate Pavic and Marcelo Arevalo claimed important victories at the Nitto ATP Finals.
Written by Jerome Coombe
Marcelo Arevalo and Mate Pavic rallied from a sluggish start on Wednesday to claim crucial victories at the Nitto ATP Finals.
The top seeds defeated Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden 7-5, 6-3 to strengthen their hopes of advancing to the knockout stage at the end of the season. Arevalo and Pavic went on a red-hot run midway through the game, winning 15 consecutive points, to secure a 68-minute victory.
Arevalo and Pavic, now 1-1 in the Bob Bryan Group, will look to strengthen their chances of making the playoffs when they face home favorites Simone Bolelli/Andrea Vavassori in their final round-robin match. The Salvadoran-Croatian team is looking to become the best duo to win the event since Mike and Bob Bryan did so in 2014.
The victory of their first team at this event was also a boost to their hopes of securing the ATP Year-End Doubles No. 1 presented by PIF honours. Arevalo and Pavic are in a comfortable position in the PIF ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings, 410 points ahead of Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos, who are 0-2 in the Mike Bryan Group.
The initial momentum seemed to belong to Bopanna and Ebden, who ended their two-year partnership after the tournament, but could not lead the break. Ebden fired two consecutive fouls in a nervy 12 game to give their opponents the advantage.
From there, Arevalo and Pavic took control of the game. Apart from the late Bopanna/Ebden fightback, they won nine out of 12 points after their first match, according to Infosys ATP Stats.
More to follow…
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