Sport | Tennis

Bhupathi-Knowles duo at the double

India-Bahamas duo edge Czech pairing to win Dubai title and lift their second trophy in a week.

  • By Alaric Gomes, Senior Reporter
  • Published: 00:02 March 9, 2008
  • Gulf News

  • Image Credit: Karl Jeffs/Gulf News
  • Mahesh Bhupathi (right) and Mark Knowles of the Bahamas in action during the men’s doubles final of the Dubai Tennis Championships on Saturday.

Dubai: Fourth seeds Mahesh Bhupathi of India and Mark Knowles of the Bahamas picked up their second title in as many weeks with a 7-5, 7-6 (7) win over third seeds Martin Damm and Pavel Vizner at the Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships yesterday.

Both pairs were chasing their second ATP title of the season. Damm and Vizner won last month in Marseille, while Bhupathi and Knowles were fresh from their win in Memphis last weekend.

The match was the closest it could get with Bhupathi and Knowles gelling well to keep Damm and Vizner at bay. The Czechs had the first chance to break in the 11th game on Knowles' serve. But Knowles held and then broke on Vizner's serve to win the set 7-5 in 42 minutes.

The second set was even closer with the tie-break the only way out after some exciting tennis on centre court. The Czechs had the upper hand in the tie-breaker, but Bhupathi and Knowles complemented each other well to win 9-7.

Bhupathi won the Dubai title in 1998 and 2004, while Knowles previously triumphed here in 2002.

Bhupathi and Knowles have won their last eight matches in straight sets, and this was the 49th doubles title for Knowles, while Bhupathi picked up his 43rd career crown.

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"At the moment, we are just trying to win as many matches as possible. We have not really been able to keep a tab on how many sets we have won so far," Knowles said.

Hungry for success

"Obviously, our games complement each other, and both of us are hungry for some wins," Bhupathi stated.

"We play to our strengths, and if at all someone has to beat us then one of us has to be off that day."

Bhupathi disclosed that they will continue with their pairing for the foreseeable future. "These are going to be exciting times for us," Bhupathi predicted.

Results

Men's doubles final: Mahesh Bhupathi/Mark Knowles beat Martin Damm/Pavel Vizner 7-5, 7-6 (7).

Men's singles final: Andy Roddick (US) beat Feliciano Lopez (SPA) 6-7 (8), 6-4, 6-2.

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