Yuki Bhambri upbeat after Dubai Open doubles win

Mumbai: Yuki Bhambri was beaming as he held the ATP Dubai Open trophy in his arms. In all his years as a professional tennis player, the doubles title he won at the weekend partnering Australia’s Alexei Popyrin was the biggest he has achieved.

And with the glittering trophy – a silver boat sitting atop a plinth – Bhambri sailed into the world doubles top 40 for the first time.

“I made the semi-finals in Doha (a week prior). You sort of know that you’re getting close but just not close enough to winning the title,” he tells HT. “I think this (win) was a very, very big one for me. It was a nice feeling to be able to get my hands on the trophy.”

Jumping up five places in the ranking ladder, the 32-year-old from New Delhi is now the world No.39 in doubles. Popyrin is the world No.27 in singles.

“It has been extremely tough and cutthroat,” Bhambri says about the ranking climb. “But I think it’s been a small step in the right direction.”

Bhambri, the 2009 Australian Open junior boys champion was once the Indian singles No.1. He broke into the top 100 in singles twice, peaking at 83 in April 2018. But for all his skill with the racquet, his body struggled to cope with the physicality of the sport.

He effectively stopped playing singles in 2023, focusing solely on doubles.

“There’s still a lot of work that is to be done – you still have to have your ice baths and stay with the regular routine,” he says. “In singles, you’re on the court running for hours, hitting ball after ball. In doubles you spend a lot of time at the net. The pace is faster and the duration (of rallies) is not that long. You’re almost going from a marathon runner to becoming a sprinter.”

The other part of the doubles grind is finding a partner, which has proven to be a particular struggle for Bhambri over the past few weeks. His regular partner, Frenchman Albano Olivetti, suffered an elbow injury early in the season and has been sidelined. Since then, Bhambri has paired up with Ivan Dodig (reaching the Qatar Open semis) and Matwe Middelkoop.

But there was a lot of uncertainty coming into Dubai.

Bhambri has known Popyrin’s coach Neville Godwin over the years. Importantly though, the Indian knew that the Australia No.2 is based in Dubai and was competing in the singles.

“I sort of took a chance, hoping that if he’s at home he might want to play a little bit of doubles this week since singles players sporadically play doubles,” Bhambri adds.

“He agreed. And five days later, we’re Dubai champions.”

Bhambri’s stock has grown, particularly after his latest win. And with it, his confidence.

“You always look towards a higher level or challenge. For me it has been the ATP 500s or the Masters, and even the Grand Slams,” he says. “Every win you get there makes you believe more that the things I’m doing is helping me get on the right track. So, I’m hoping this is the beginning of many bigger events and not the end.”

Next on the agenda is the season’s first ATP 1000 Masters event at Indian Wells, United States. Bhambri will team up with Sweden’s Andre Goransson. After that, he will play in the Miami Masters with Portugal’s Nuno Borges.

“The grind continues,” he concludes.