Indian tennis player Yuki Bhambri’s dream run at the Indian Wells BNP Paribas Open men’s doubles draw came to a shut at the semifinal stage, as he and Anre Goransson of Sweden were beaten in a three-set thriller.
Bhambri was making his first semfiinal appearance at any Masters 1000 event, having previously reached the quarterfinals on two occasions. Alongside Goransson, the 33-year-old took advantage of the draw opening up to knock off three quick wins, not losing a set in the process in the desert.
Next up for Goransson-Bhambri was the all-cousins duo of Arthur Rinderknech and Valentin Vacherot. The French-Monegasque cousins had famously met in the final of the Shanghai Masters in 2025, where journeyman Vacherot beat Novak Djokovic on the way before clinching the trophy.
A thrilling semifinal at Indian Wells saw the cousins seal the first set 7-5, taking a narrow advantage. Serve would be maintained through the second set as Bhambri and Goransson showed plenty of fighting spirit, keeping themselves in touching distance.
In the second set tiebreaker, Bhambri and Goransson levelled things up by taking the set, pushing the match to a 10-point match-tiebreak situation.
Vacherot, Rinderknech make chemistry count
This is where Rinderknech and Vacherot would make their chemistry count, shutting the door on the Indian-Swede duo by winning the set 10-5, comfortably progressing to the final. It was a story of the Bhambri-Goransson pair not able to translate their chances – they generated 11 break point opportunities in the match, but were only able to force a break of serve once.
This match was a real test for Rinderknech-Vacherot, with Bhambri and Goransson being the first doubles specialists they faced in California. They had already dumped some big names out of the tournament in the opening rounds, starting with the partnership of Daniil Medvedev and Learner Tien.
They then beat the combination of Novak Djokovic and Stefanos Tsitsipas in two tight sets, before winning a quarterfinal match against Russian duo of Andrey Rublev and Karen Khachanov.
It was a disappointing but well-fought end to the run for Bhambri, who had reached the quarterfinal stage at Indian Wells in 2025, and went one better this time around. The Indian veteran is still hunting fo ra landmark title win in his career, always having been on the periphery.
Awaiting Rinderknech-Vacherot in the final are Argentinian Guido Andreozzi and Frenchman Manuel Guinard.
