Bhambri-Ryan lift Almaty Open doubles trophy

Almaty: India’s number one doubles player Yuki Bhambri won his first ATP Tour title of the 2026 season, partnering American Ryan Seggerman to clinch the Almaty Open with a thrilling victory over top seeds Lucas Miedler and Neil Oberleitner of Austria here on Sunday.

The fourth-seeded Indo-American pair prevailed 7-6(3), 6-7(1), [10-2] in the final of the ATP 250 tournament, securing Bhambri’s fifth career doubles title on the ATP Tour.

The victory added another title to Bhambri’s steadily growing ATP trophy collection, having previously won ATP 250 crowns in Mallorca in 2023, Gstaad and Munich in 2024, and the ATP 500 Dubai tournament in 2025.

The 34-year-old Bhambri would savour today’s performance, especially after enduring a medal-less outing at the Asian Games in Japan, where he was expected to step on the podium.

It was his second ATP final of the season following a runner-up finish at the ATP 250 Geneva Open with Kiwi partner Michael Venus.

Bhambri touched a career-high rank of 18 in February but slid gradually to drop out of the top-40. In 2026, he reached the third round of the Australian Open men’s doubles with Sweden’s Andre Goransson before losing in the second round of the French Open.

He suffered first-round exits at Wimbledon and the US Open, where he partnered New Zealand’s Michael Venus. His best Grand Slam performance came in 2025, when he and Venus reached the US Open semifinals. Bhambri also won the prestigious ATP 500 title in Dubai that year, partnering Australia’s Alexei Popyrin.

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The Hans India