Rohan Bopanna’s work has only just begun.
While his quarter-final loss with American partner Ben Shelton will hurt, there is much to be positive about.
There are plans resume their partnership in upcoming tournaments as Bopanna’s longevity record continues.
The Indian tennis star spoke to Amisha Savani of The South African after his match.
Scintillating tennis
The pair’s loss was to Monegasque Romain Arneodo and Frenchman Manuel Guinard (6-2, 4-6, 10-7).
The crowds were treated to scintillating tennis, with some tense moments.
Arneodo/Guinard’s win was all the more jubilant, as the wildcard entrants are now into the semis.
It was also a proud moment for Monaco, as Arneodo is from the principality’s home soil.
The Bopanna-Shelton pairing has been captivating, given their dissimilarities.
To start, there’s a 23-year age gap – when singles-ranked world No 14 Shelton was born in 2002, Bopanna was representing India in the Davis Cup team.
Bopanna is a doubles specialist, whereas Shelton’s career has focused on singles.
But their differences have played to their strengths, which Bopanna acknowledged: “it was definitely a fun week playing with Ben, who’s got so much great energy on the court, and any time you have a partner like that in doubles it surely helps and brings the best out of me as well”.
When asked what fans could expect from the pair in the near future, Bopanna confirmed that they would resume their partnership for Munich and Madrid, but not Roland Garros, as Shelton would likely want to prioritise his singles run.
At the age of 45 years, Bopanna recently made history by being the oldest ever player to win a match at an ATP Masters 1000 event.
In 2024, he reached a No 1 doubles ranking, after winning his first major doubles title at the Australian Open with Matthew Ebden, becoming the oldest first-time No 1 at the age of 43.
This is a heroic feat for any tennis player, more notably for one from a country where tennis is overshadowed by other sports like cricket.
Noting this longevity, Savani asked Bopanna what was needed for India to create the Bopanna’s of the future.
Grass roots structure
Bopanna stressed the need for a grass roots structure, currently lacking in India: “all the players who have come and been at their highest level have done it on their own, the system has not really nurtured them to bring them there, and that is what I think we need to create”.
The subject is clearly close to Bopanna’s heart.
He shared that he would try to create this much-needed structure through his own academy in Bangalore via a pathway for players.
He acknowledged that whilst things have started to improve for Indian tennis, there was more nurturing needed.
More tournaments in the country would bring crucial funding, and attract good coaches: “we have some amazing talented kids who are getting lost after 15, 16 17, and that is where I think you know, we need a better system in place”.
Bopanna highlighted that the lack of ranking tournaments in India meant that Indian players who wanted to play at the highest level had to travel to earn crucial ranking points: ”there’s no other option, but I think initially starting off with junior tournaments, and futures, that is where currently the Indian tennis players are ranked, so I think we need to bring in those ranking tournaments where it’s gonna help the players where they’re currently ranked at.
“There’s no point I think bringing in a big major event there where hardly any Indian players are getting in. I think once we get better, we can bring in those better events, but right now we just need to bring in a lot more facilities and a lot more tournaments to the country”.
Bopanna’s work to build a legacy and create longevity for tennis in India will no doubt be momentous for Indian tennis.
The trailblazer shows no signs of stopping.
Amisha Savani is reporting exclusively for The South African from the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, in the Principality of Monaco.
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