We will be tough team to beat in future: Bopanna and Sharan

Their eyes trained at an elusive Olympic medal at the 2020 Tokyo Games, India's top two tennis players, Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan, strongly feel they could go on to become a "tough team to beat" on the Tour.

Bopanna and Sharan moved to the semifinals of the Tata Open Maharashtra after a nail-biting 6-7(4) 6-4 17-15 win over Leander Paes and his Mexican partner Miguel Angel Reyes-Varela.

Bopanna, ranked 37, and Sharan (39) joined forces at the beginning of the year and have committed to play together on the Tour for the first time.

Bopanna said playing with a fellow Indian and that too a left-hander is something he has not done before and it has lots of advantages.

"I had had a lot of partners but I am playing with a left-hander first time. Playing with somebody from India is always better. Even when I played with Mahesh in 2012, we had great time, irrespective of results. We enjoyed the sport, so it's a bonus," said Bopanna.

Sharan, who had to change about 14 partners in the 2018