Nick Kyrgios and Nenad Zimonjic proved to be a winning combination on the doubles court as they upset second seeds and two-time former champions Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan, 6-4, 3-6, 10-7, in the first round of the BNP Paribas Open on Saturday.
The Australian/Serbian duo struck 13 aces as they prevailed in 69 minutes against the Bryans, who lifted the trophy in Indian Wells in 2013-14. Kyrgios is searching for his first ATP World Tour doubles crown alongside a stalwart of the game. The 40-year-old Zimonjic is a winner of 54 tour-level doubles titles, and is a two-time runner-up in the desert.
Top seeds Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut opened up their title defense with a 4-6, 6-3, 10-7 victory over Americans John Isner and Jack Sock. The French pair triumphed at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden last year to claim what would be their first of three successive ATP World Tour Masters 1000 crowns.
Fourth seeds Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares battled to a 6-7(4), 6-2, 10-3 victory over Daniel Nestor and Edouard Roger-Vasselin. The British-Brazilian tandem are chasing their second title of the season after victory last week in Acapulco.
The Indian Wells doubles draw has been packed with star names in 2017, but two of them bowed out on Saturday. Juan Martin del Potro teamed up with Leander Paes in a 6-3, 6-4 defeat to Gilles Muller and Sam Querrey, while Marin Cilic and Croatian countryman Nikola Mektic fell 6-2, 4-6, 10-6 to Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau.
