New Delhi: :Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi were handed first-round byes in their respective doubles matches at the Italian Open in Rome.

Bhupathi and Mark Knowles, of the Bahamas, who are seeded fourth, will take on Spaniards Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco in the second round. Lopez and Verdasco defeated the Russian-Croatian pair of Igor Andreev and Ivan Ljubicic 6-4, 7-6 in the first round.

Paes and Australian Paul Hanley, seeded eighth, will be up against the winners of the match between the team of Luis Horna of Peru and Argentine Juan Monaco and the Polish duo of Mariusz Frystenberg and Marcin Matkowski.

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