Mahesh Bhupathi and Max Mirnyi victorious in London

Mahesh Bhupathi and Max Mirnyi victorious in London

Mahesh Bhupathi and Max Mirnyi held their nerves to defeat Wesley Moodie and Dick Norman in straight-sets 6-4, 6-4 to ensure their spot in the semi-finals of the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London on Friday November 26. 

In a winner-take-all scenario, Bhupathi and Mirnyi were impressive saving all of the break points they faced, winning 78 per cent of their first service points, while converting two break chances in the 78 minute contest.

“It is nice being in the semi-finals,” remarked Bhupathi, pleased with his and Mirnyi’s performance. “Going into the match it was a must-win situation for us, so we were glad to get it done. We played pretty well, very solid. I thought we served really well and happy that we won.

They will square off against Group A winners Mariusz Frystenberg and Marcin Matkowski who were undefeated in the round robin stage. Their semi-final match is set for Saturday November 27.

Bhupathi looked ahead to semi-final match against the Polish pair, stating, “[They] are obviously playing their best tennis of the year. They won the group, but we’ve beaten them every time we’ve played them this season. It’s going to be a good game. [The atmosphere in London] is awesome; every day we can stay alive in this tournament it’s a bonus for us. Hopefully we can keep going till the weekend is over.”

This marks the first time Bhupathi and Mirnyi advance beyond the round robin stage at the year-end tournament. Bhupathi and Mirnyi previous qualified for the year-end finals in Houston in 2003 and 2004.

Bhupathi and Mirnyi opened both sets with an early break of serve, and were able to hold on to their lead to guarentee their victory. At 3-5 in the second set, Bhupathi and Mirnyi earned two break point opportunities, which they failed to convert, but regained their composure to allow Mirnyi to serve out victory at 5-4 in a match that was more nervewracking than the quick two-set finish might have indicated.

In the other semi-final, Group B winner’s Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic are set to take on the first seeded tandem of Mike and Bob Bryan. 

The round robin stage of the year-end tournament wrapped up today, in both singles and doubles. The semi-finals are set for Saturday November 27. In singles, Roger Federer is set to face Novak Djokovic, while Andy Murray will take on world number one, Rafael Nadal in other match.