India's Rohan Bopanna and Aisam Qureshi of Pakistan renewed their partnership on the Challenger circuit by entering their sixth straight semi-final at the US $ 150,000 Malaysia Open on Friday.
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The Indo-Pak pair overcame Dutchman Sander Groen and Florian Mayer of Germany [Images] 7-5, 6-3 in the quarter-final in Kuala Lumpur. Groen-Mayer had toppled third seeds Rik de Voest and Rainer Schuettler 7-6, 6-7, 10-5 in a tough first-round.
Bopanna, enjoying the best year in his doubles career, thus became the third Indian to make his mark at the event as Mustafa Ghouse and Stephen Amritraj had booked their semi-final berth on Thursday.
The Indian pair beat Denis Istomin and Vaje Uzakov 6-4, 6-4 in the quarter-final.
Amritraj-Ghouse play top seeds Stephen Huss and Wesley Moodie while Bopanna-Qureshi will take on second seeded Thai twins Sonchat and Sanchai Ratiwatana in a bid to enter the final.
Bopanna-Qureshi have four Challenger titles to their name this year, and extended their winning streak to 19 matches when they made it to the final of the Mumbai Open in September.