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World No. 1 Melo to team with Soares in Rio Open

Xinhua, February 13, 2016 Adjust font size:

World No. 1 Marcelo Melo will team with fellow Brazilian Bruno Soares in the Rio Open doubles tournament starting next week as they fine-tune their preparations for this year's Olympic Games.

The pair, who do not usually play together, are among the favorites to win gold at the first Olympic Games in South America, which begin on August 5.

"The most important thing as that we get match practice together," Soares told the Folha de S.Paulo newspaper on Friday.

"Individually we are practically playing the best tennis of our careers. We know there is a long road ahead, from a physical and psychological standpoint. Achieving a good result here [at the Rio Open] will give us greater confidence.

"I'm very happy to be playing alongside my great friend Marcelo in Rio. It's a great way to begin our preparations for Rio 2016, which is our principal objective this year."

The clay-court ATP 500 tournament at the Brazilian Jockey Club will be the pair's first time playing together since their Davis Cup loss to Croatia's Ivan Dodig and Franko Skugor last September.

Melo, 32, leads the ATP tour doubles rankings with 8,360 points while 33-year-old Soares is 10th with 5,160 points. Endit