#AsianGames2018: Rohan Bopanna, Divij Sharan clinch men's tennis doubles gold
Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan added another gold medal to India's medal tally at the Asian Games 2018 and the first one in tennis, by winning the men's tennis doubles final. The duo defeated the Kazakhstan pair of Aleksandr Bublik and Denis Yevseyev 6-3, 6-4 in 52 minutes. Less than 20 minutes into the match, the Indian duo was 4-1 ahead. Here's more.
Bopanna displayed a good range of strokes
Bopanna was particularly formidable from the baseline, displaying a good range of strokes to pull off some tough winners, helped by his brute power. At 3-3, Bopanna and Sharan clinched the all-important break to go up and though they were pushed a bit in the very next game, the top seeds held serve to grab a 5-3 lead.
India's first tennis gold at Asian Games 2018
Serving for the match at 40-0, Bopanna didn't really come up with the booming serve but the Kazakhs had been deflated enough and a feeble return went into the nets to give India the first tennis gold of the ongoing event.
India won gold on four occasions at Asian Games
India has claimed the men's doubles gold on four occasions at the Games, the last pair being Somdev Devvarman and Sanam Singh in 2010 Guangzhou edition. Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes remain the most successful Indian men's doubles pair in Games history, having claimed back-to-back gold medals in 2002 and 2006. In 2014, Saketh Myneni and Sanam had ended with a silver medal.
