They may still be a new pair, but Jake Gibb and Tri Bourne are already proving themselves winners. The Americans swept Switzerland's Adrian Heidrich and Mirco Gerso, 21-19, 23-21.
It was close throughout, with the U.S. team missing two set points before taking the first, 24-minute opener. Gibb and Bourne quickly fell behind their Swiss opponents in the second set, but battled back from 8-10 to essentially match their competition point-for-point.
Team USA finally sealed the deal on their third match point, with 50 minutes elapsed. The duo now leads 2-0 in Pool C.
Concerning his chemistry with Gibb, Bourne said in a post-match interview: "We have a lot of mutual respect for each other. It doesn't need to be that complicated."
Bourne replaced Gibb's usual partner, Taylor Crabb, when Crabb tested positive for COVID-19 upon arrival in Tokyo.