IndoPak Express Rolls Into Dubai

Rohan Bopanna of India and Aisam Ul Haq Qureshi of Pakistan, known around the world as the IndoPak Express are all set to play their first round match versus Jarkko Nieminen and Victor Troicki in the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

For them being in Dubai seems like playing at home.

“There are so many fans from India and Pakistan here,” says Qureshi, “that it feels like playing at home. The support we get is really amazing. And the Tournament Director, Salah Tahlak, has been so kind to give us wildcards the last two years.”

“Dubai is a great city,” begins Bopanna. “Because of all the fans from the sub-continent, this is one of my favourite tournaments for sure.”

While Qureshi arrived fresh and ready to roll, Bopanna arrived a little jaded after a week of wedding celebrations back home. First there was his cousin’s wedding in Bangalore, and then he was one of the guests of honour at Mahesh Bhupathi and Lara Dutta’s wedding in Goa over the weekend.

“Everybody kept asking me when I was getting married,” laughed the eligible bachelor from Coorg.

The IndoPak Express had an amazing run last year which included a quarterfinal showing at Wimbledon and a finals appearance at the US Open. Thus proving that they belong among the world’s best.However, it was their historic partnership (India and Pakistan) and message of Stop War Start Tennis that has won them a legion of fans around the world. The duo enter each competition wearing shirts that proclaim, “Stop War, Start Tennis.”

This year’s Dubai Duty Free Championships have more than one train on the tracks looking to finish in first place. The Indian Express team of Mahesh Buphati and Leander Paes have reunited and are off to a fantastic start by winning the Chennai Open and making the finals of the Australian Open where they were sidetracked by the world’s number one team, the Bryan brothers.

“It is great to see ‘Heshi and Lee playing together again,” admits Qureshi. “They are a very exciting team and it is great for doubles to have them back. It seems like forever that I have been admiring their play.”

For sports fans in the sub-continent a final between the two would a dream draw. And then the big question will be which of the two ‘trains’ has the most steam.

—news@khaleejtimes.com