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Former Ole Miss netter and 1995 NCAA Doubles Champion Mahesh Bhupathi reached the semifinals of the Mixed Doubles Championships at Wimbledon Friday, with partner Mary Pierce (France).
Pierce and Bhupathi, unseeded in the tournament, beat the No. 12 seeds Kim Clijsters and Olivier Rochus of Belgium, 6-1, 7-5 in the quarterfinals. The Indian and French partnership has yet to drop a set on route to the semifinals.
Bhupathi, who won the Wimbledon mixed doubles title with Elena Likhovtseva in 2002, did not lose serve and never faced a break point in the match.
Pierece, (winner of three grand slam titles in her career) and Bhupathi needed only 29 minutes to grab the first set. However, the Belgians responded and at 3-2 in the second, broke to go up 4-2.
But, just when it looked like the Belgians were starting to turn the match around, Bhupathi and Pierce answered. They gained an immediate break back to get to 3-4 and held serve for 4-4. At 5-5, the set looked to be heading towards a tiebreak until Rochus double-faulted once and missed an easy forehand, which handed Pierce and Bhupathi a chance to serve for the match. The experienced Pierce closed out the match to love.
Their next opponent has yet to be determined, as rain has suspended play at Wimbledon. They will meet either the Australia team of Todd Woodbridge and Samantha Stosur or the Swedish/United States pair of Jonas Bjorkman and Lisa Raymond, Saturday in the semis.
Bhupathi has won seven grand slam titles in doubles and mixed doubles. In addition to his 2002 mixed doubles title at Wimbledon, Bhupathi won the doubles title in 1999 with fellow countryman Leander Paes.
While at Ole Miss, Bhupathi led the Rebels to the NCAA team finals. He became the first Rebel tennis player to win an NCAA title when he teamed with Ali Hamadeh to capture the Doubles Championship in 1995 and ended the year as the No. 1 doubles team in the nation. In addition, Bhupathi was an All-American, 1995 SEC Singles Champion and SEC Player of the Year.
