Indian doubles pairs face tough rivals in Olympic tennis

Rio  de  Janeiro:  Veteran  Leander Paes, playing in his seventh successive Olympics  will pair with Rohan Bopanna  to take on  the Polish duo of Marcin Matkowski and Lukas Kubot in the opening round  of the men’s doubles  tennis  here  on Saturday.   The Indian doubles team is ranked 15th in the world because Paes has now slipped out of top 50 in the men’s doubles rankings.   In the women’s doubles, world number one Sania Mirza and Prarthana Thombare will take on Chinese pair of Peng Shuai and Shuai Zhang in the first round.   With both men and Women doubles having strong teams ,the Indians will struggle to cross the first round hurdles. However, India hopes of a tennis medal rest in the mixed doubles event in which Sania will pair with Bopanna.   Paes who won a bronze medal in the men’s singles event at 1996 Atlanta Olympics  has  a burning desire to close his  historic  Olympic journey with another  medal.   The Indian is not alone in his quest for second Olympic medal  there are four singles players who are  looking  for  a unique double at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.   Since 1988, when the sports was first included in the Games no player has won more than one gold medal in singles. Rafael Nadal,(ESP), Andy Murray, (GBR),  Serena Williams  and her sister  Venus Williams (USA) are all in a position to earn a second singles gold at Rio 2016.   In the men's singles, top-ranked Novak Djokovic  (SRB) and second seed Andy Murray  are considered to be  the main contender  for gold.   Djokovic has been at  the top  of  the ATP tour since 7 July 2014 and he won the first two grand slams in 2016 at the Australian Open and Roland Garros to bring his grand slam title tally to 12.   However, his dream of a calendar grand slam was shattered in the third round of Wimbledon but he comes here  on the back of victory at the Rogers Cup in Toronto last weekend.   The Serb won bronze at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games but he faces a tough first-round opponent in Juan Martin Del Potro (ARG), the 2009 US Open champion who defeated him in the bronze medal match at London 2012.   Murray   who won Olympic gold at London 2012 and claimed his second Wimbledon title last month has been selected to be Great Britain's flagbearer at the Opening Ceremony.   Murray who beat Djokovic in the final of the Italian Open title in May will face Viktor Troicki  (SRB) in the first round.   Other strong contenders for podium finish are Kei Nishikori  (JPN), Jo-Wilfried Tsonga  (FRA), David Goffin (BEL), Marin Cilic  (CRO), Gael Monfils  (FRA) and DEL Potro One of the doubles teams destined for scrutiny are the Brazilian pairing of Marcelo Melo  and Bruno Soares , who are seeded third behind top seeds and Wimbledon champions Pierre-Hugues Herbert  and Nicolas Mahut  (FRA), and second-seeded brothers Andy Murray  and Jamie Murray.   In the women’s section Serena Williams winner of 21 grand slams is the strong favourite .She is the only competitor in the sport to win singles and doubles at all four grand slams as well as Olympic gold in both disciplines.   Serena WILLIAMS is the top seed in the women’s draw and she will face Daria Gavrilova (AUS) in the first round. Venus WILLIAMS, who has won seven career grand slam titles, is the fifth seed and faces Kirsten Fliipkens (BEL).   The sisters, who recently won the Wimbledon doubles title, are the top seeds in the women’s doubles competition.   Angelique Kerber (GER) has been the player most capable of stepping up as a rival for Serena WILLIAMS this year, upsetting the American to take the Australian Open title. Kerber  first-round opponent will be Mariana Duque –Marino (COL).   Disclaimer: The opinions, beliefs and views expressed by the various authors and forum participants on this website are personal and do not reflect the opinions, beliefs and views of ABP News Network Pvt Ltd.