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| Aisam & I have matured as players: Rohan Bopanna | | |
MUMBAI: It may have taken a little more than three years and a string of doubles partners to renew his partnership with Aisam ul Haq Qureshi, but for Rohan Bopanna it is better late than never.
The Bangalore player, who along with his Pakistani partner reached the semifinal of the 2010 US Open and the Wimbledon quarterfinal, seems confident of working towards an even better season.
"It's been a tough year for me, more so because I changed eight partners. It's been rather unsettling. The most successful doubles teams are those which have stuck together and played for years.
With each partner you might have one or two good weeks, but to have a consistently good run a fixed doubles partner is a must," says the 33-year-old, who reached the Wimbledon semifinal this year with Eduard Roger Vasselin, but failed to make the cut for the ATP London World Tour Finals. "Even last year I asked Aisam to get back," explained Bopanna.
"Since he said he was doing well with Jean-Julien Rojer, I had to respect that as a professional. At the end of this year's circuit I asked him again.
He checked with Julien and it worked out well for me." Though he admits that the gap of three years might have led to a lot of changes in them as players, Bopanna calls the reunion with Qureshi a positive start.
"I think we both have matured as players. Playing with different partners has given us a good knowledge of our strengths and weaknesses. Together we have done really well in the past.
I am really looking forward to playing with a fixed partner for the next few seasons," said Bopanna. "This year, our focus will be on the Masters series and the Grand Slams. This time we are training together under Scot Davidoff.
It is going to be a big step as earlier when we played, we had two different coaches. Now it's going to be an advantage playing under a single coach," enthused the doubles World No. 3.
"There is nothing like starting the year at home," said Bopanna who will start the season with the Chennai Open, "Aisam will be in Chennai on January 27. So we will be practicing a lot and I am sure we will definitely get to see what our improvements are in both of us." With an eye on the starting season, Bopanna has been focusing on his fitness.
"I have been working on my volleys and fitness for the past six months. Coach Scot was down here in Mumbai for two weeks. I did a lot of track and field in the ITPA camp in Hyderabad along Somdev Devvarman.
"When I was playing singles I used to do it, but not as a doubles player. First few days I was probably looking like a zombie. We were always paired. For some reason Somdev's trainer always paired me with him. Now, I feel great.
I feel physically fit. I feel I am the fittest I have been in the last few years during the offseason," he concluded. |
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