Last year’s Nitto ATP Finals champions Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury beat Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden 6-3 6-4 in 61 minutes in their opening Red Group match in the doubles tournament at the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin. Ram and Salisbury earned a single break in each set to improve their winning streak at the Pala Alpitour to six consecutive matches.
Ram and Salisbury won 83% of their first serve points and fended off their only break point they faced at 1-2 40-40 in the second set.
Ram and Salisbury beat Bopanna and Ebden in the US Open final last September. The US and British team also won two more titles in Lyon and Vienna. Bopanna and Ebden reached three finals this year at the US Open, in Shanghai and Paris Bercy.
Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski edged past Australians Rinky Hijikata and Jason Kubler 6-3 6-4 in 87 minutes to move to 1-0 in Red Group.
Koolhof and Skupski broke serve in the fourth game on the deciding point and held serve to 15 to open up a 4-1 lead. Hijikata and Kubler converted their third break point in the seventh game for 3-4. Koolhof and Skupski earned their second break in the eighth game and served out the opening set on their second set point.
Koolhof and Skupski converted their second break point in the third game to take a 2-1 lead. Hijikata and Kubler saved two match points in the ninth game on the deciding point, as Koolhof and Skupski was serving for the win. Koolhof and Skupski sealed the win on their third match point in the 10th game.
Koolhof and Skupski avenged their defeat against Hijikata an, who beat the Dutch and British team en route to the Australian Open last January.
Koolhof and Skupski, who reached the semifinals at last year’s edition of the Nitto ATP Finals, will be aiming to win their first ATP Tour title this year following s’Hertogenbosch and Wimbledon. They lost Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury in the semifinals of the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin in 2022. Koolhof claimed the Nitto ATP Finals title in London 2020 with his teammate Nikola Mektic.
Ram and Salisbury will take on Koolhof and Skupski on Wednesday.
