Bolelli/Fognini Do Double Duty For Rio de Janeiro Title

Italians Simone Bolelli and Fabio Fognini claimed their fourth tour-level doubles title together on Sunday evening when they defeated third seeds Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares 7-5, 6-7(2), 10-6 to win the Rio Open presented by Claro.

The countrymen did double duty on Sunday, winning their semi-final against Santiago Gonzalez and Andres Molteni 7-6(4), 6-2 earlier in the day. Fognini also played two singles matches Saturday, reaching the semi-finals before falling against eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz.

“Fabio is amazing, he was playing singles all week with a lot of delays because of rain, but did not give up on the doubles and here we are with the title,” Bolelli said.

The last time the pair had triumphed was at the 2015 Australian Open. Bolelli is a nine-time tour-level doubles titlist and Fognini has lifted six tour-level doubles trophies.

The Italians won 64 per cent of their second-serve points compared to 50 per cent for their opponents. Bolelli and Fognini saved four of the six break points they faced.

Murray and Soares were pursuing their first title of the season. Soares, a Brazilian, was trying to earn glory in Rio de Janeiro for the first time.

“Sorry for Bruno, I know how much it means for a Brazilian to win in Rio,” Fognini said. “I love playing here, the fans carried me all week, all the way to this title.”