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Paes, Bhupathi storm into semi-finals

The 'Indian Express' pair of Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi stormed into the French Open semi-finals, defeating the current world No. 1 pair of Ellis Ferreira and Rick Leach 7-5, 6-2 today.

Despite their No. 1 world ranking, Ferreira and Leach were seeded eighth at the French Open and were having a good run on the circuit this year. And, it looked as if they would whip the champion Indian combination, who started in disastrous fashion, dropping serve in the second game itself off Bhupathi's serve.

But after Ferreira served a love game, and it was 0-3, the dynamic Indian duo surprisingly went from strength to strength, though they couldn't get a break in the next four games as the score reached 2-5.

With Rick Leach serving for the set at 5-3, the Indians played what could be described as classic stuff. Leach had to fight through a break attempt at 30-40 and then had a match-point. Paes and Bhupathi still hung in, but wasted three more break chances before getting the break on the fifth attempt.

Bhupathi then held serve easily to draw parity at 5-5. Then came Ferreira's turn to get broken. The Indians scored three points in a row to break him after he was up 30-15. Paes held serve at love and it was a 7-5 first set for the Indians, who had won five games in a row.

In the second set, Ferreira was broken quickly on the first chance itself in the third game and the Indians were up 2-1. The 'Indian Express' had converted three break chances in a row after wasting the first four of the match. Leach was taken to two deuces and a break attempt in game five as well, but he held.

Errors crept into the Indians' play as Bhupathi found himself facing two break attempts at 30-40 and advantage out. However, they held for a 4-2 lead. The relentless attack continued, as Ferreira was once again taken to a break attempt at 30-40 and at advantage before the Indians converted the second one (the fourth converted in ten).

Paes then served out easily for the match for a well-deserved 7-5, 6-2 victory. Indeed, it was an 11-2 shellacking in the last 13 games of the match which lasted an hour and 15 minutes.

Paes and Bhupathi will face the winner of the other quarter-final, between the Swedish pair of Nicklas Kulti/Mikael Tillstrom and the Australian pair of Wayne Arthurs/Andrew Kratzmann. Both the teams are unseeded, though Kulti and Tillstrom are ranked 23rd on the ATP doubles ranking whereas Arthurs/Kratzmann are seeded 10th.

After a rather ordinary year, which has seen them win just one title, the Gold Flake Open at Chennai, and lose in the final of the Australian Open, the Indians are now looking pretty solid. With no other seeded team left in the fray, the Indian Express, as Paes and Bhupathi are known on the doubles circuit, can easily clinch their first Grand Slam title.

They now have an almost unbelievable record of reaching the semi-finals in six of the last seven Grand Slams! They are now the undisputed number 1 and 2 players in the world once again (a title here will push them up and out of reach from others for a while too). They have picked up 401 points now (they had 345 to defend from the last year).

In the other semi-final Goran Ivanisevic/Jeff Tarango will face Pablo Albano/Tomas Carbonell. Pablo Albano/Tomas Carbonell defeated 16th seed team of Yevgeny Kafelnikov/Max Mirnyi 6-3, 3-6, 6-2.

Later today, Leander will again be out on court no 10 with Lisa Raymond for the mixed doubles quarter-final match. They will face the sixth seed pair of Larisa Neiland/Rick Leach.

Tomorrow, the third seed pair of Mahesh Bhupathi and Agi Sugiyama will face Katarina Srebotnik/Piet Norval in the quarter-finals.