Paris Olympics 2024: Indian Team Bopanna-Balaji Fall in First Round of Men’s Doubles Tennis

The Indian duo of Rohan Bopanna and N. Sriram Balaji exited the men’s doubles tennis event at the ongoing Paris Olympics after losing their first-round match. The Indian pair lost 7-5, 6-2 against the French team of Gael Monfils and Edouard Roger-Vasselin in straight sets. The match lasted 1 hour and 16 minutes.

The French duo converted two of their three break-point chances, enabling them to take a hard-fought first set. Meanwhile, Bopanna and Balaji made 15 unforced errors, preventing them from gaining control of the match. In the second set, Monfils and Roger-Vasselin broke the Indian pair’s serve in the fourth and eighth games to secure a straight-sets victory.

In the previous Olympics held in Tokyo, the Indian men’s doubles team, consisting of Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan, also faced an early exit. They were defeated in the first round by the German pair of Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies with a score of 6-2, 6-4. Despite a strong start, Bopanna and Sharan could not maintain their momentum and succumbed to the higher-ranked Germans.

Comparing the performances, while Bopanna and Sharan’s defeat in Tokyo was straightforward, the current pair of Bopanna and Balaji showed more resistance in the first set against the French team in Paris. However, unforced errors and failure to convert crucial points led to their downfall in both tournaments.

Earlier in the day, India bagged its first medal at the Paris Olympics when ace shooter Manu Bhaker secured a bronze medal in the 10 Metre Women’s Air Pistol event. The 22-year-old became the first Indian woman to win a medal in shooting at the Olympics. Bhaker earned the bronze with a score of 221.7, marking a redemption arc after her pistol malfunctioned at the Tokyo Olympics. She made history by becoming the first Indian woman in 20 years to reach an Olympic shooting final in an individual event, since Suma Shirur in 2004.

South Korea’s Ye Jin clinched the gold medal with an Olympic record of 243.2 points, while her compatriot Kim Yeji took the silver with 241.3 points. On the opening day, Bhaker finished third in the qualification round of the Women’s 10 Metre Air Pistol to qualify for the final. Meanwhile, Rhythm Sangwan failed to qualify for the final, finishing in 15th place.

(With ANI Inputs)

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