Making history at Flushing Meadows, India's tennis marvel, Rohan Bopanna, accompanied by his partner Matthew Ebden, stormed into the US Open final. With this achievement, Bopanna etches his name as the oldest Grand Slam doubles finalist in the Open Era. Displaying riveting tennis, the duo overpowered Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut in a gripping semi-final contest, priming themselves for a face-off against Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury in the ultimate showdown.
However, Bopanna's journey to this pinnacle wasn't straightforward. In an interview with ATPTour.com, the Indian doubles maestro shared a moment from April 2021 when he considered hanging up his tennis racquet. After consecutive losses, including a match with Alexander Bublik in Estoril, he was consumed with self-doubt. He reminisced, “I was sitting near the ocean and I was telling myself, ‘What am I even doing? I'm not even winning matches, I have a family at home. Should I just call it a day and just go back?'."
Yet, against this backdrop of despair, Bopanna chose perseverance over surrender. With a renewed spirit and undeterred determination, he is now delivering exceptional tennis on the court. Although having clinched five ATP Masters 1000 titles with diverse partners, a major championship win in men's doubles still eludes him. Remarkably, he achieved all this while grappling with a severe physical ailment - both his knees completely lack cartilage. Recollecting the painful times, Bopanna disclosed, “It's worn out completely. It's just worn out. It's not a tear. Both my knees have no cartilage and in 2019 I was on two, or three painkillers a day. [In] 2020 I started Iyengar yoga, and that actually made a tremendous difference. I went from two, or three painkillers a day to no painkillers today. I think the only time sometimes I take an anti-inflammatory is from playing two matches a day. At that time the body says, ‘Hello, please slow down, you still have no cartilage."
The COVID-19 pandemic, which disrupted professional tennis, became a blessing in disguise for Bopanna. During this time, he discovered the therapeutic power of Iyengar yoga. Embracing yoga changed his life: “It really made the difference. I said 'Okay'. Then when I started playing, I felt pain-free. And then that was a whole new ballgame," he elucidated.
Presently, the 24-time tour-level doubles champion practices a condensed yoga routine every morning. Bopanna believes that yoga has realigned his body, calmed his mind, and significantly influenced his game. Accentuating the role of his support system, he shared, "I think the yoga kind of helped align the body better, helped the mind as well [stay] calmer. And then having the right team, I've had Scott Davidoff travelling with me for 12, 13 years now and that has made a huge difference to understanding how I'm playing. I've invested in myself in terms of bringing a good physio on board this year. Last year, I didn't have that."
Bopanna's narrative exemplifies the quintessence of resilience, where the combination of physical wellness, mental fortitude, and unyielding support can redefine one's trajectory.
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