Yuki-Olivetti make opening round exit from Australian Open

Melbourne, Jan 15 (PTI) India’s Yuki Bhambri and his French partner Albano Olivetti bowed out of the Australian Open after a straight-sets loss to local wildcards Tristan Schoolkate and Adam Walton in the opening round here on Wednesday.

The Indo-French duo, struggling with errors, fell 2-6, 6-7 in the men’s doubles match that lasted one hour and 20 minutes.

Bhambri and Olivetti failed to convert any of their three break points and committed five double faults, compared to just one by their Australian opponents.

After surrendering the first set without much resistance, Bhambri and Olivetti showed more resilience in the second set, holding serve for most of the game.

However, they fell behind 0-2 when Schoolkate and Walton executed a stunning backhand winner.

The Indo-French pair later lost their service game again due to a forehand error to trail 2-4, ultimately conceding the match.

On Tuesday, former world number one Rohan Bopanna and his new Colombian partner Nicolas Barrientos also made a first-round exit.