Indian Tennis star Rohan Bopanna and his Australian partner Matthew Ebden on Saturday clinched the Australian Open doubles title, winning the final against Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori 7-6(0), 7-5. Bopanna scripted history by winning a Grand Slam title at the age of 43 years. Bopanna became the oldest player in the Open era to win a Grand Slam. After the match, Bopanna thanked his wife, daughter and his Australian partner. Bopanna also revealed that he had planned to quit Tennis two years ago while going through a lean patch.
Bopanna had a fantastic last season with his Australian partner, although that did not result in trophies. Bopanna and Ebden came close to winning the US Open last year, but faltered in the final.
Bopanna, in a beautifully crafted message after the win, and said he was elated at acquiring his first major title at the age of 43.
“My beautiful wife, Supriya, & my daughter, Tridha.. thank you for all the support, all the love. I know a couple years ago I sent her a video message & said ‘I’m gonna call it a day.’ Because I wasn’t winning matches at all. I went 5 months without winning a match. I thought that was gonna be the end of my journey. Perseverance inside me just kept me going. I really changed so many things & found a wonderful partner,” Bopanna said.
“As Matt said, you definitely know how old I am. I’ve changed it a bit & said I’m at level 43, not age 43. Obviously this couldn’t have been possible without a fantastic Aussie partner by my side. Thanks to Matt. We had a fantastic season last year. For me to win my first men’s doubles Grand Slam here at the Asian pacific Grand Slam, it’s totally a home slam,” Bopanna added.
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