NEW YORK: American Rajeev Ram and Briton Joe Salisbury, the fourth seeds, produced top-flight tennis when it mattered to stop a spirited Rohan Bopanna and Ivan Dodig 6-7 (4), 6-4, 7-6 (2) in the US Open third round.
The Indo-Croat pairing were slower with scoring on their opponent's serves early in the opening set, but as the set progressed they came together nicely to open up a 3-0 and 5-1 lead in the tie-break which they sealed after a couple of anxious points.
In the fourth game of the second set Bopanna and Dodig had two chances to break, but the 13th seeds were distracted by an 'audible obscenity warning' for the Croat, which may have been where the match turned. Dodig was then broken in the ninth game.
After trading serves in the fifth and sixth games of the decider - Bopanna and Salisbury - normal order struck. In the deciding tie-break Ram and Salisbury got ahead 2-0 and 6-2 to seal their place in the last-eight.
