Bhambri-Olivetti in semis of ASB Classic

India’s Yuki Bhambri and his French partner Albano Olivetti made a strong comeback after losing the first set to stun third seeds Julian Cash and Llyod Glaspool and advance to the semifinals of the ASB Classic, an ATP250 event, in Auckland on Thursday. The unseeded pair of Bhambri and Olivetti edged past the British pair 3-6 6-4 12-10 in one hour and 21 minutes. They will next take on the unseeded American duo of Christian Harrison and Rajeev Ram, who knocked out the fourth-seeded French combo of Sadio Doumbia and Fabien Reboul 7-5 6-7(4) 10-5 in another quarterfinal. Meanwhile, India’s highest-ranked singles tennis player Sumit Nagal will take on world No. 26 Tomas Machac of the Czech Republic in the opening round of the Australian Open, beginning here on Sunday. The 27-year-old Nagal is ranked 96th.