Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori beat Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden 6-2 6-3 after 56 minutes on their team debut in the Bob Bryan Group of the doubles tournament at the Nitto ATP Finals.
Bolelli and Vavassori avenged their defeat against Bopanna and Ebden, who beat the Italian doubles specialists in the Australian Open final last January.
Bolelli and Vavassori won 13 out of 14 first serve points. The Italian doubles specialists have improved to 3-2 in their head-to-head series against Bopanna and Ebden. They will face Kevin Krawietz/Tom Puetz and Marcelo Arevalo/Mate Pavic in their next head-to-head matches.
Turin-born Vavassori fired a forehand return winner to break Bopanna’s serve with a forehand return winner in the second game of the first set. The home players went up 0-30 in the fourth game on return, but Ebden won three consecutive points to hold serve for 3-1. Bopanna saved the second break point in the fifth game with his serve for 2-4. Vavassori earned his second break to seal the first set on his set point. The Italian team went up a set and a break in the fourth game to take a 3-1 lead. They earned a double break point on the deciding point at 4-1 but Ebden saved it. Bolelli served out the win on the first match point.
“We served and returned very well. We were able to maintain the energy high. We thank the crowd who gave us a lot of energy”, said Bolelli. “I feel emotional to share this moment with my family. It’s a special feeling. It’s a fantastic event. It’s a dream come true to be here. We are working well this week. The dream continues”, said Vavassori.