2020 is the Olympic year and like Indian aspirants in other sports, Rohan Bopanna is hoping to be a member of the Tokyo Games.
Qualification in tennis will be known after the French Open 2019 in June when the official rankings are updated. The 39-year-old doubles specialist, ranked 38th in the ATP list, is eager to return to the circuit after recovering from a shoulder injury which forced him to opt out of the Davis Cup tie against Pakistan.
Speaking on the sidelines of a Tata Mumbai Marathon 2020 event by Asics, Bopanna spoke about getting back into the groove as fast as possible with an eye on Tokyo.
“I am looking forward to the Olympic Games. Divij (Sharan) and I are trying to play as much as possible, in tournaments wherever we can get in,” said Bopanna.
Divij’s ranking is 46 in doubles. “Unfortunately, with our ranking, we can get into only (ATP Tour) 250 events. We don’t get into the (ATP Tour) 500 and (ATP) Masters because the cut-offs are really high. Having said that, we need to focus on our individual rankings to qualify for the Olympics (July 2020), which is right after the French Open (June 2020). We have a few months left.”
About the tournaments the Indian duo is targeting, he said: “A couple of Grand Slams and all the (ATP) Masters series.”
