MELBOURNE: Yuki Bhambri never wastes time worrying about his workload. That approach simply does not suit his personality. Last year, the 33-year-old Indian tennis player made a significant decision. He chose to partner with doubles specialist Michael Venus at the close of the grass-court season. This move represented the realization of a quiet promise between two long-standing friends.
A Promising Partnership Cut Short
India's top-ranked doubles player is five years younger than the 38-year-old Venus. Venus won the French Open men's doubles title back in 2017. The two athletes first met during Bhambri's junior career when he lived in Florida. Their partnership showed immediate promise. Within just a few weeks of joining forces, they charged all the way to the semifinals of the US Open doubles competition.
For Bhambri, this success in New York carried special meaning. A debilitating tendonitis condition in both knees had forced him to shift his focus from singles to doubles play. The strong performance signaled that he was finally gaining confidence and stability in the two-player format.
Unfortunately, their collaboration soon hit a major obstacle. Michael Venus required elbow surgery. The procedure sidelined him for approximately six months, putting their promising partnership on hold.
Moving Forward with a New Alliance
Bhambri, a former junior Australian Open singles champion, did not let the setback defeat him. He acknowledged the frustration while enjoying a piccolo coffee in Melbourne's warm weather.
"That period was annoying because he is someone I enjoy playing with," Bhambri stated, leaning forward in his chair. "It was disheartening not to be able to carry on with a partnership that could flourish. Hopefully at some point when he's back, we might have another chance of going back and playing together again."
By October, Bhambri had returned to the drawing board. He began evaluating potential new partners for the upcoming season. "A lot of times, it's who is around and who's available as well, so you don't always sort of get to cherry pick," he explained.
His search led him to 31-year-old Andre Goransson. The Swedish player was a familiar face, someone Bhambri had known for several years. Goransson reached the men's doubles semifinals at the Australian Open last year alongside Dutch partner Sem Verbeek.
Seeded Tenth at Melbourne Park
Bhambri and Goransson now form a new Indo-Swedish pairing. They hold rankings of 21 and 22 respectively in the ATP Tour's individual doubles standings. This has earned them the tenth seed in the men's doubles draw at the Australian Open. Their first-round match pits them against Australian duo James Duckworth and Cruz Hewitt.
The partnership, though relatively fresh, has already gained valuable competitive experience. They played together in tournaments in Brisbane and Auckland earlier this season.
"We've known each other for a few years and it's not like a new partnership, which I think is beneficial because usually when you start off, you're really unsure about how things are. This doesn't feel that way," Bhambri remarked. "I think it was good that we got a few matches in November in Vienna and then we obviously played in March as well."
"It's going well and I think we just really need to sort of perform good now when it matters," the Indian player concluded.
Other First-Round Action
In other first-round doubles action, wildcard entrants Niki Poonacha and Thailand's Pruchya Isaro put up a strong fight. They ultimately fell to the Spanish pair of Pedro Martinez and Jaume Munar. The final scoreline read 6-7 (3), 5-7.
