Indias double ace player Rohan Bhopanna made history when he became the oldest player to advance to a Grand Slam final after he and his doubles partner Mathhew Ebden reached the US Open Final on Thursday. The sixth-seeded pair produced an outstanding game in tennis at Flushing Meadows.Bopanna and Matthew Ebden defeated Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut in Thursdays semifinals to set up a highly anticipated superfinal clash against Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury, who are highly ranked in the tournament.Bopanna will compete in the title match at Flushing Meadows for the second time. The 43-year-old lost to the Bryan brothers in the 2010 mens doubles final he played in alongside Pakistans Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi. Bopanna would like to surpass himself this time and win his first Grand Slam championship. It will be the second for Edben.Age is just a number and Rohan Bopanna proves it at 43 years and 6 months😎Hats off to #TOPScheme athlete @rohanbopanna for making history as the oldest tennis mens player to reach a #GrandSlam Doubles Final in the Open Era!The legendary Bopanna 🎾 continues to script… pic.twitter.com/wPqeMyDO5E— Anurag Thakur (@ianuragthakur) September 8, 2023 While Bopanna tries to get his hands on his first Grand Slam trophy, he will look to draw inspiration from the Indians who have triumphed at the venue in the past.Bopanna has won five ATP Masters titles with five different partners, although he has never won a major championship in mens doubles.No cartilage wont stop RohanThe 24-time tour-level doubles titlist said,”Its worn out completely. Its just worn out. Its 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 I take an anti-inflammatory is by playing two matches a day”.Ageing like a fine 🍷Bopanna 🥳#Tennis🎾🇮🇳s @rohanbopanna along with partner @mattebden knocked out 5⃣time champions Herbert and Mahut 7-6 & 6-2 in the SF of #USOpen🥳Bopanna, a #TOPSchemeAthlete has now entered his 2⃣nd Grand Slam Mens Doubles Final, 13 years after… pic.twitter.com/xEZedO8Apc— SAI Media (@Media_SAI) September 8, 2023 Talking to ATPTour.com, Bhopanna said, “I was sitting near the ocean and I was telling myself, What am I even doing Im not even winning matches, I have a family at home. Should I just call it a day and just go back. Our daughter is four years old right now, and I thought, Why not Lets do that”. Furthermore, Bhopanna added, “I think the yoga kind of helped align the body better and helped the mind as well to stay calmer. And then having the right team—Ive had Scott Davidoff traveling with me for 12, 13 years now and that has made a huge difference in understanding how Im playing. Ive invested in myself in terms of bringing a good physiotherapist on board this year. Last year, I didnt have that”.
