The mixed doubles pair of Rohan Bopanna (India) and Zhang Shuai (China) advanced to the quarter-finals of the ongoing Australian Open 2025 after receiving a walkover against fourth seeds Taylor Townsend (USA) and Hugo Nys (Monaco) in the second round on Sunday.
Zhang Shuai, a two-time Grand Slam champion and former world No. 2, teamed up with Rohan Bopanna to reach the final eight. The Indo-Chinese pair will face the winners of the match between Australia’s Olivia Gadecki and John Peers and Hungary’s Timea Babos with El Salvador’s Marcelo Arevalo.
In the first round, Bopanna and Zhang defeated France’s Kristina Mladenovic and Croatia’s Ivan Dodig 6-4, 6-4 at the season’s first tennis Grand Slam.
In the men’s doubles event, Rohan Bopanna partnered with Colombian Nicolas Barrientos. However, the Indo-Colombian duo lost in the opening round, falling 7-5, 7(7)-6(5) to Spain’s Pedro Martinez and Jaume Munar.
Last year, Bopanna became the oldest man to win a Grand Slam title in the Open Era when he secured the Australian Open men’s doubles crown with Matthew Ebden. However, the pair split at the end of 2024, and neither Bopanna nor Ebden progressed beyond the first round in this year’s men’s doubles event.
Bopanna’s campaign in mixed doubles remains India’s final challenge at the Australian Open 2025. Other Indian players faced early exits: Yuki Bhambri and his French partner Albano Olivetti, along with Rithvik Bollipalli and Ryan Seggerman (USA), were eliminated in the first round of the men’s doubles.
Meanwhile, N Sriram Balaji and his Mexican partner Miguel Angel Reyes-Varela crashed out in the second round. In singles action, Sumit Nagal was ousted in the first round after a loss to Czechia’s Tomas Machac