Fifth-seeded Colombians Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah booked their places in the Roland Garros third round on Friday with a 6-4, 7-6(4) victory over Argentineans Guido Pella and Diego Schwartzman in one hour and 37 minutes. Last year’s semi-finalists will next challenge Wesley Koolhof and Artem Sitak.
Cabal and Farah came into the clay-court Grand Slam championship on the back of winning their first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 crown at Internazionali BNL d’Italia (d. Carreno Busta/Sousa). With a 12-15 record in team finals (9-10 on clay), they have also reached the finals this year at the Australian Open (l. to Marach/Pavic) and the Argentina Open (l. to Molteni/Zeballos). Cabal, 32, reached the 2011 Roland Garros final with Eduardo Schwank (l. to Mirnyi/Nestor).
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Top seeds Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo, this year’s Sydney International titlists (d. Struff/Troicki), knocked out Spaniards Roberto Carballes Baena and Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 6-4, 7-5 and now challenge No. 13 seeds Rohan Bopanna and Edouard Roger-Vasselin in the third round.
Second seeds and Australian Open champions Oliver Marach and Mate Pavic, who recently became the individual No. 1 in the ATP Doubles Rankings, overcame Indians Yuki Bhambri and Divij Sharan 7-5, 6-3 for a clash against Marcelo Arevalo and Jamie Cerretani. The Salvadorian/American tandem beat Federico Delbonis and Benoit Paire 7-6(5), 6-4. Marach and Pavic captured their third trophy from five finals this year at last week's Banque Eric Sturdza Geneva Open (d. Dodig/Ram).
Elsewhere, eighth seeds Nikola Mektic and Alexander Peya required just 53 minutes to beat Nikoloz Basilashvili and John Millman 6-4, 6-2. They now challenge 10th seeds Raven Klaasen and Michael Venus in the third round.
But two seeded teams, who have reached the Roland Garros quarter-finals before, fell. Americans Steve Johnson and Jack Sock defeated No. 11 seeds Pablo Cuevas and Marcel Granollers 7-5, 6-4 and French pair Calvin Hemery and Stephane Robert knocked out No. 15 seeds Julio Peralta and Horacio Zeballos 2-6, 7-5, 6-4.