Bengaluru Open 2: Saketh-Ramkumar in last 8

IMAGE: Saketh Myneni and Ramkumar Ramanathan in action against Yuki Bhambri and Divij Sharan in the Round of 16 at the Bengaluru Open 2 ATP Challenger, on Wednesday. Photograph: Bengaluru Tennis Open/Twitter

The Indian pair of Saketh Myneni and Ramkumar Ramanathan beat compatriots Yuki Bhambri  and Divij Sharan in straight sets to advance to the quarter-finals of the Bengaluru Open 2 ATP Challenger, in Bengaluru, on Wednesday.

Saketh and Ramkumar, who won the doubles title at the Bengaluru Open 1 last week, won 6-1, 7-5 in the Round of 16 match at the KSLTA Courts.

Wild card entrants S D Prajwal Dev and Niki Kaliyanda Poonacha also brought cheer to the Indian camp after they overcame the better-ranked Canadian-Japanese combination of Steven Diez and Rio Noguchi 6-2, 6-4 en route to the quarter-finals.

Arjun Khade, who will take on third seed Frenchman Enzo Couacaud in the singles pre-quarter-finals on Thursday, combined with Austrian Alexander Erler to breeze past the duo of Bogdan Bobrov of Russia and Dominik Palan of the Czech Republic with a 6-0, 6-3 victory.

In the men’s singles, top seed Aleksandar Vukic and sixth seed Max Purcell — both from Australia — registered contrasting wins to advance to the quarter-finals.

While Vukic brushed aside the challenge of Great Britain’s Jay Clarke 6-1, 6-3, Purcell struggled past compatriot Marc Polmans, winning 7-6(7), 4-6, 6-2.

Results:

Singles (Round of 16): 6-Max Purcell (AUS) bt Marc Polmans (AUS) 7-6(7), 4-6, 6-2; Mathias Bourgue (FRA) bt Steven Diaz (CAN) 6-3, 6-4; Dimitar Kuzmanov (BUL) bt Alexandre Muller (FRA) 6-4, 6-1; 1-Aleksandar Vukic (AUS) bt Jay Clarke (GBR) 6-1, 6-3.

Doubles (Round of 16):

1-Alexander Erler (AUT)/Arjun Kadhe (IND) bt Alt-Bogdan Bobrov (RUS(/Dominik Palan (CZE) 6-0, 6-3; Enzo Couacaud (FRA)/Andrew Harris (AUS) bt Raul Brancaccio (ITA)/Johan Nikles (SUI) 6-4, 6-2; Marcos Kalovelonis(GRE)/Toshihide Matsui (JPN) bt PR-Anirudh Chandrasekar (IND)/N Vijay Sundar Prashanth (IND) 7-5, 7-6 (3); WC-SD Prajwal Dev (IND)/Niki Kaliyanda Poonacha (IND) bt Steven Diez (CAN)/Rio Noguchi (JPN) 6-2, 6-4; 3-Saketh Myneni (IND)/Ramkumar Ramanathan (IND) bt Yuki Bhambri (IND)/Divij Sharan (IND) 6-1, 7-5.