Jannik Sinner and Reilly Opelka have lost their Indian Wells doubles opener to Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos.
Linking up at Indian Wells via a wildcard, the singles duo were beaten 6-4, 6-4 by the top seeds after one hour and 18 minutes.
ATP number two Sinner returns to singles action in the round of 16, while Opelka is out of the tournament after losing in the second round.
Despite their straight-sets doubles defeat at Tennis Paradise in California, the two singles icons were both in high spirits afterwards.
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Reilly Opelka reacts after losing with Jannik Sinner in Indian Wells doubles
Opelka said of Sinner on court: “It’s an honor playing with this guy.
“Special guy, unbelievably nice, lucky to call him a friend and the sport is lucky to have guys like this.
“Brings eyes like you can’t imagine and it’s really just cool to share the court with him.”
The Italian was then allowed to interview his partner, to whom he asked the question: “What do you feel like?”
Opelka said: “Not very good,” as Sinner questioned: “My volleys need to improve, no?”
The American replied: “No, Jannik’s not the problem on this team, guys. I told them we needed a wildcard and it’s definitely because he’s only ranked number 2 in the world.”
Sinner now plays against Joao Fonseca for the very first time in his career in singles, while Opelka was knocked out of the event by fellow American Ben Shelton.
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How did Jannik Sinner and Reilly Opelka play together in doubles?
There was great camaraderie between the pair, which came about after Sinner asked Opelka to play doubles at Indian Wells.
They have, however, fallen well short of their previous efforts, having won the Atlanta Open together back in 2021.
Despite Opelka’s formidable serving and Sinner’s powerful ball-striking, the pair were unable to get over the line against their very experienced opponents.
| Granollers/Zeballos | Opelka/Sinner | |
| 2/6 (33%) | Break Points Converted 22% | 0/4 (0%) |
| 2 | Aces 18% | 6 |
| 6/16 (38%) | 2nd Serve Return Points Won 16% | 9/19 (47%) |
| 10/19 (53%) | 2nd serve points won 13% | 10/16 (63%) |
| 30/36 (83%) | 1st serve points won 10% | 27/39 (69%) |
| 36/55 (65%) | First serve 9% | 39/55 (71%) |
| 12/39 (31%) | 1st Serve Return Points Won 5% | 6/36 (17%) |
| 3 | Double Faults 4% | 2 |
| 4/4 (100%) | Break Points Saved 3% | 4/6 (67%) |
Clinching a victory against the top seeds was always going to be a big ask, with their opponents having won both the French Open and US Open together last year.
They boast over 50 ATP doubles titles combined, with both Granollers and Zeballos having once reached world number one in the format.
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