INDIAN tennis player Rohan Bopanna and his Indonesian partner Aldila Sutjiadi advanced to the semifinals of the US Open mixed doubles after a challenging victory over Australian Matthew Ebden and Czech player Barbora Krejcikova.
The eighth-seeded Bopanna-Sutjiadi duo secured a 7-6(4), 2-6, 10-7 win against the fourth-seeded Ebden-Krejcikova pair in a quarterfinal match that lasted one hour and 33 minutes on Monday night.
Earlier in the tournament, Bopanna and Sutjiadi had defeated the Australian duo of John Peers and Katerina Siniakova from the Czech Republic, winning 0-6, 7-6(5), 10-7 in the second round.
In the upcoming semifinal, Bopanna and Sutjiadi will face the American team of Donald Young and Taylor Townsend.
Bopanna, 44, had exited the men’s doubles competition after he and his partner Ebden, the second seeds, lost 1-6, 5-7 to the 16th-seeded Argentine pair of Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni in the third round.
Bopanna and Ebden had previously won the Australian Open earlier this year.
Having already announced his retirement from the Davis Cup, it remains to be seen if the 44-year-old Bopanna will return to defend his Australian Open title in January 2025.
(With inputs from PTI)
During the hearing, Clifford denied all the charges except for the rape charge, which was added to the indictment at the session. (Photo: Hertfordshire Police /Handout via REUTERS)
Man pleads not guilty to murder of BBC presenter's family
A 26-year-old man has pleaded not guilty to charges of murdering the wife and two daughters of BBC sports commentator John Hunt in a crossbow and knife attack.
Kyle Clifford, who also faces charges of rape, appeared via video link at Cambridge Crown Court on Thursday.
Clifford, arrested in July after a manhunt, is charged with three counts of murder, one count each of rape and false imprisonment, and two counts of possessing offensive weapons – a 10-inch knife and a crossbow.
During the hearing, Clifford denied all the charges except for the rape charge, which was added to the indictment at the session.
He is expected to enter a plea for that charge at a later date.
The victims were Carol Hunt, 61, wife of horseracing commentator John Hunt, and their daughters Louise, 25, and Hannah, 28.
An earlier hearing revealed that Louise had been found tied up and that both she and her sister had been shot with a crossbow, while their mother had been stabbed with a knife.
The fatal attack occurred at the family’s home in Bushey, a commuter town near Watford, northwest of London.
(With inputs from AFP)