<p>Quelling a second-set challenge from Skupski and Marx, the Indian Express scripted a 6-4, 7-6 (7-3) w</p>.<p>in to enter the semifinals of the $4,50,000 event. Next up for the Indian pair is the Croatian combination of Marin Cilic and Ivan Dodig, straight-set winners over Thailand’s Ratiwatana siblings Sanchai and Sonchat.<br /><br />As the scoreline suggests, it wasn’t an easy ride for the former World number ones but unlike in the first match, where they literally came from the dead, Paes-Bhupathi always had their noses in front during their close to an hour and a half clash which oscillated between the magical and the mundane. There were stunning you-blink-you-miss rallies at the net, often followed by a patchy passage. It was Paes, who carried the four-time champions here for better part of first set pulling out returns from hell, before Bhupathi too got into the act.<br /><br />Expectedly, the crowd had turned up in significant numbers, easily the best attended match of the meet yet, and the crack duo didn’t disappoint them keeping the Indian interest alive in a tournament where the rest of the home challenge has gone up in smoke. “It’s also (to do with) the place where we play,” noted Paes acknowledging the crowd’s support. “It’s tough to put into words but just the atmosphere, the energy around the court you feel... Everyone is just willing and pushing you to do well... I think that’s the difference between a new comer when you actually feel it as a pressure and two stalwarts or veterans that have been around to handle that pressure so well that you use it as a great motivation,” he explained. <br /><br />It was an intensely fought match without, however, the commensurate quality. The task could have been that much harder for Paes-Bhupathi if only Marx-Skupski hadn’t made a mess of some easy scoring opportunities. “Dangerous,” said Bhupathi later when asked to assess their opponents. “I mean both of them had big serves and if you look at it, in the last 14 years we have never made anything easy for ourselves in Chennai. Even though we were cruising, one double fault or one return could have brought them back in to the game. But then with this format any team is dangerous, so actually happy to be out with a straight-set win,” he remarked.<br /><br />There was just a break of one serve in the first set which the Indians bagged in 34 minutes. After holding their respective serves in the four games, Paes-Bhupathi earned the crucial break in the fifth when Skupski, at 15-40, failed to put away an easy overhead smash, crashing the ball into the net. The set then went on serves before the hosts’ pair pocketed it.<br /><br />The match headed, or so it appeared, for an early finish when Paes-Bhupathi ran up a 2-0 lead with break of serve in the very first game of the second set. The British-German duo, however, wasn’t going to go down without offering a fight. Their first break of the match came immediately in the fourth game and after levelling the scores, Marx-Skupsky hung on to their dear lives to take the set into the tie-breaker. Contrary to expectations, Paes-Bhupathi had a fairly easy run in the tie-breaker, riding on mini breaks in fourth and ninth games.<br /><br />Result: Doubles (quarterfinals): Mahesh Bhupathi/ Leander Paes (Ind) bt Philipp Marx (Ger)/ Ken Skupski (Bri) 6-2, 7-6 (7-3).<br />Action today: Singles semifinals: Xavier Malisse (Bel) vs Janko Tipsarevic (Ser); Tomas Berdych (Cze) vs Stanislas Wawrinka (Sui) or Robin Haase (Ned).<br />Doubles semifinals: Mahesh Bhupathi / Leander Paes (Ind) vs Marin Cilic / Iavn Dodig (Cro); Simone Bolelli (Ita) / Janko Tipsarevic (Ser) vs Robin Haase (Ned) / David Martin (USA).</p>
<p>Quelling a second-set challenge from Skupski and Marx, the Indian Express scripted a 6-4, 7-6 (7-3) w</p>.<p>in to enter the semifinals of the $4,50,000 event. Next up for the Indian pair is the Croatian combination of Marin Cilic and Ivan Dodig, straight-set winners over Thailand’s Ratiwatana siblings Sanchai and Sonchat.<br /><br />As the scoreline suggests, it wasn’t an easy ride for the former World number ones but unlike in the first match, where they literally came from the dead, Paes-Bhupathi always had their noses in front during their close to an hour and a half clash which oscillated between the magical and the mundane. There were stunning you-blink-you-miss rallies at the net, often followed by a patchy passage. It was Paes, who carried the four-time champions here for better part of first set pulling out returns from hell, before Bhupathi too got into the act.<br /><br />Expectedly, the crowd had turned up in significant numbers, easily the best attended match of the meet yet, and the crack duo didn’t disappoint them keeping the Indian interest alive in a tournament where the rest of the home challenge has gone up in smoke. “It’s also (to do with) the place where we play,” noted Paes acknowledging the crowd’s support. “It’s tough to put into words but just the atmosphere, the energy around the court you feel... Everyone is just willing and pushing you to do well... I think that’s the difference between a new comer when you actually feel it as a pressure and two stalwarts or veterans that have been around to handle that pressure so well that you use it as a great motivation,” he explained. <br /><br />It was an intensely fought match without, however, the commensurate quality. The task could have been that much harder for Paes-Bhupathi if only Marx-Skupski hadn’t made a mess of some easy scoring opportunities. “Dangerous,” said Bhupathi later when asked to assess their opponents. “I mean both of them had big serves and if you look at it, in the last 14 years we have never made anything easy for ourselves in Chennai. Even though we were cruising, one double fault or one return could have brought them back in to the game. But then with this format any team is dangerous, so actually happy to be out with a straight-set win,” he remarked.<br /><br />There was just a break of one serve in the first set which the Indians bagged in 34 minutes. After holding their respective serves in the four games, Paes-Bhupathi earned the crucial break in the fifth when Skupski, at 15-40, failed to put away an easy overhead smash, crashing the ball into the net. The set then went on serves before the hosts’ pair pocketed it.<br /><br />The match headed, or so it appeared, for an early finish when Paes-Bhupathi ran up a 2-0 lead with break of serve in the very first game of the second set. The British-German duo, however, wasn’t going to go down without offering a fight. Their first break of the match came immediately in the fourth game and after levelling the scores, Marx-Skupsky hung on to their dear lives to take the set into the tie-breaker. Contrary to expectations, Paes-Bhupathi had a fairly easy run in the tie-breaker, riding on mini breaks in fourth and ninth games.<br /><br />Result: Doubles (quarterfinals): Mahesh Bhupathi/ Leander Paes (Ind) bt Philipp Marx (Ger)/ Ken Skupski (Bri) 6-2, 7-6 (7-3).<br />Action today: Singles semifinals: Xavier Malisse (Bel) vs Janko Tipsarevic (Ser); Tomas Berdych (Cze) vs Stanislas Wawrinka (Sui) or Robin Haase (Ned).<br />Doubles semifinals: Mahesh Bhupathi / Leander Paes (Ind) vs Marin Cilic / Iavn Dodig (Cro); Simone Bolelli (Ita) / Janko Tipsarevic (Ser) vs Robin Haase (Ned) / David Martin (USA).</p>
