Indian Wells, March 14 (NationPress) The journey of India's Yuki Bhambri and his Swedish teammate Andre Goransson at the Indian Wells Open concluded in the men's doubles semifinal as they faced a defeat against Arthur Rinderknech and Valentin Vacherot.

The duo of Rinderknech and Vacherot, who gained recognition last year by reaching the third unseeded final in Masters 1000 history in Shanghai, advanced to their inaugural career doubles final after securing a 7-5, 6-7(3), 10-5 win over Bhambri and Goransson on the courts of Stadium 1.

After losing the first set 5-7, Bhambri and Goransson were on the verge of elimination in the second. Trailing 4-5 and down 0-30 on their serve, they rallied to avoid defeat, forcing—and ultimately winning—a tiebreak.

Following a challenging second set, Rinderknech and Vacherot regrouped to showcase their best tennis during their first match tiebreak of the week. Goransson served, but Vacherot delivered a powerful return that soared into the doubles alley for a clean winner, giving them an 8-4 lead. Rinderknech then followed up with a backhand return winner after the changeover, extending the lead to 9-4, and clinched the tiebreak 10-5 to secure their place in the final.

This marked Bhambri's first semifinal appearance at the ATP Masters 1000 level, after previously reaching the doubles quarter-finals twice. His earlier quarterfinal runs at Indian Wells were in 2025 (with Goransson) and the Miami Masters 2025 (with Nuno Borges).

Last month, Bhambri achieved a career-high ranking of world No. 20 in the latest ATP Rankings, making him the first Indian men's doubles player to enter the Top 20 since Rohan Bopanna.

Alongside Goransson, Bhambri demonstrated remarkable performance at the season's first Grand Slam, the Australian Open in Melbourne, reaching the third round and accumulating the ranking points needed to surpass the Top 20 threshold.

Bhambri has been consistently advancing since the 2025 season, when he reached the semifinals of the US Open with New Zealand's Michael Venus, narrowly losing to the fourth-seeded British pair of Joe Salisbury and Neal Skupski after having a set and break advantage.

In March 2025, Bhambri achieved his first ATP 500 title at the Dubai Tennis Championships, partnering with Alexei Popyrin from Australia. The duo staged an impressive comeback from a set down and saved four match points to defeat the reigning champions, Harri Heliovaara and Henry Patten, in a thrilling final with scores of 3-6, 7-6 (12), 10-8.