India’s Yuki Bhambri and Swedish partner Andre Goransson rallied from a set down to defeat Mexico’s Santiago Gonzalez and the Netherlands’ David Pel in the men’s doubles second round at the Australian Open 2026. Despite this victory, India faced a setback as Sriram Balaji and his partner exited the competition at Melbourne Park. Bhambri, India’s top-ranked men’s doubles player, and Goransson, the 10th seeds, clinched a hard-fought victory by winning 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-3 after initially dropping the opening set.
The match saw a suspension due to the Australian Open’s extreme heat policy with the second set tied at 2-2. Bhambri, ranked 22nd in the men’s doubles ATP rankings, and Goransson displayed resilience by maintaining their serves consistently throughout the match. They managed to secure the win by dominating the decider, breaking their opponents twice to close out the match.
Following this win, Bhambri, a former junior Australian Open singles champion, advanced to the third round of the men’s doubles for the first time since 2014. Notably, Bhambri is the sole Indian player left in contention at the Australian Open 2026. In a separate match, Olympian Balaji, along with partner Neil Oberleitner, bowed out in the second round after a defeat to fourth seeds Marcelo Arevalo and Mate Pavic.
Balaji and Oberleitner, who entered the main draw as late alternates, had previously caused an upset by defeating former Grand Slam champions in the first round. However, Saturday’s loss marked Balaji’s fourth consecutive second-round exit in the men’s doubles at the Australian Open. Meanwhile, Bhambri’s mixed doubles campaign with Nicole Melichar-Martinez ended in the opening round with a defeat to sixth seeds Zhang Shuai and Tim Putz.
