French Open 2021 doubles: Rohan Bopanna, Divij Sharan on collision path; Ankita Raina in fray too 

Bopanna and Sharan could meet in the third round at Roland Garros. For Ankita Raina, the only Indian woman playing, this will be her second Grand Slam.

2 minBy Naveen Peter 30 May 2021 13:50 GMT+0
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(Getty Images)

Indian participation at the French Open 2021 will see doubles specialists Rohan Bopanna, Divij Sharan in action with separate partners. Ankita Raina will be the only Indian in the women’s doubles draw.

In the doubles draw announced on Sunday, both Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan, who are likely to team up at the Tokyo Olympics, were drawn in the same half with a possible third-round clash on the cards. 

The 41-year-old Bopanna, who is teaming up with Croatia’s Franko Škugor, will play his first-round tie against Nikoloz Basilashvili of Georgia and Germany's Andre Begemann.

Ranked 40th in the ATP’s doubles chart, Bopanna has had an underwhelming build-up to the season’s second Grand Slam with his best performance coming at the Madrid Masters earlier this month. 

At the ATP 1000 event, Bopanna — partnering Canada’s Denis Shapovalov — had reached the quarter-finals.

The 35-year-old Divij Sharan, meanwhile, has struggled to find form on clay this season. His low ranking has kept him away from top-quality tournaments. 

The world No. 73 Sharan’s best show came at the Heilbronner Neckarcup, an ATP Challenger event, in Germany where he, along with Sander Arends of the Netherlands, made the semi-finals.

Divij Sharan, however, will be hoping for a turnaround when he begins his French Open campaign with Federico Delbonis of Argentina. They will play Australian duo of Alex de Minaur and Matt Reid in the opening round.

In the women’s doubles, Ankita Raina will be playing in her second Grand Slam. Raina is partnering Lauren Davis of the USA at Roland Garros. The pair will open its campaign with a first-round tie against Lucie Hradecká of the Czech Republic and Germany's Laura Siegemund

Ankita Raina has had an improved season this year with her maiden Grand Slam appearance at the Australian Open being the highlight.

Her first-round loss Down Under made the 28-year-old Raina only the fourth Indian woman to compete in a Grand Slam main draw. She was also in good form at the Billie Jean King Cup playoffs against Latvia last month.

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