Davis Cup: Paes creates history as India win doubles match
Tianjin (China), April 7: Leander Paes and Rohan Bopanna notched up a hard fought win in the doubles contest to keep India's chances alive in their Davis Cup Asia/Ocenia Group I tie against China here on Saturday.
The experienced Indian combination were made to sweat by the spirited Chinese pair of Mo Xin Gong and Ze Zhang before claiming a 5-7, 7-6 (5), 7-6 (3) victory.
It was a landmark moment for the 44-year-old Paes as he notched up a record 43rd Davis Cup victory to become the most successful player in the history of the tennis competition.
Paes was tied on 42 wins with Italian great Nicola Pietrangeli for a long time, but the Kolkata born star finally surpassed him with his 43rd victory.
India now trail the hosts 1-2. Ramkumar Ramanathan and Sumit Nagal had lost their respective singles matches on Friday which handed China a 2-0 lead.
Now Ramanathan and Nagal will now have to win both the reverse singles if India is to qualify for the World Group Play-offs.
Needing a win in the doubles to keep India afloat in the tie, Paes stamped his class along with the experienced Bopanna.
In the first set, Paes' service was broken in the 11th game after the two pairs were tied at 5-5.
The Indians got more break opportunities than the hosts but struggled to kill it off.
The Indians broke Gong in the third game for a 2-1 lead and then held on.
In the decider, Paes and Bopanna frittered away a 3-1 lead by losing three games in a row to trail 3-4.
Paes came out to serve at 5-6 and went down 0-30 but the veteran used all his experience to pull off the crucial hold to force another tie-breaker.
In the tie breaker, Paes and Bopanna used all their experience to roll over the lower-ranked Chinese and pull off the triumph.
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Air India Express introduces late-night Bengaluru–Mangaluru service
International services at M’luru cancelled on March 7
Mangaluru: Air India Express will introduce a late-night daily flight service on the Bengaluru–Mangaluru–Bengaluru sector starting March 10, 2026.
According to the sources, flight IX 5971 will depart from Bengaluru at 9.25 pm and arrive in Mangaluru at 10.40 pm. The return flight, IX 5972, will depart from Mangaluru at 11.10 pm and reach Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru, at 12.20 am.
The additional service will operate daily and will remain in effect until March 28, 2026.
Meanwhile, Air India Express has cancelled all its scheduled international flights from Mangaluru International Airport (IXE) on March 7 due to the ongoing crisis in the Middle East.
The Bengaluru–Mangaluru sector already has multiple daily services. Apart from Air India Express, IndiGo also operates flights on this route.
