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Bhupathi back in action

Shailesh Soni

Mahesh Bhupathi will be back in action this week. The Indian doubles ace will join his partner Leander Paes for the doubles event in the Cincinnati Super 9 tournament, where they have been given top billing.

Bhupathi was on vacation in India for five weeks, nursing the injury he sustained during the Wimbledon championships, while Paes played on the circuit with other partners.

The Indian Express, as they are referred to on the circuit, have a first round bye and will face the unseeded pair of Andrew Florent and David MacPherson in the second round on Thursday. Florent-MacPherson beat Carlos Moya/Marat Safin 6-1, 6-2 in the first round.

The Indians will have to strike up a rhythm quickly as their second round match against Florent-MacPherson is bound to be tough. A potential quarter-final against Adams/deJager or Arthurs/Kratzmann will sure set up a nice grudge match.

Bhupathi was originally supposed to play the singles qualifiers also but decided on a few more days' rest. Paes, too, has skipped the singles event.

Meanwhile, Jonas Bjorkman and Patrick Rafter won the doubles title at the Montreal Super 9 and consolidated their No 2 team ranking. In the process, they became the second team to go over 2000 points this year. They have effectively qualified for the Hartford draw for the World Doubles Championship with the Indians.