Rohan Bopanna announces retirement from professional tennis spanning over two decades

Two-time Grand Slam champion Rohan Bopanna, among India’s most accomplished tennis players, announced his retirement on Saturday (November 1, 2025).

“After 20 unforgettable years on tour however, it’s time… I’m officially hanging up my racquet,” Bopanna stated on his Instagram account.

Bopanna, 45, achieved great heights as a doubles player. He rose to the world number one spot in doubles last year, becoming the fourth Indian after Leander Paes, Mahesh Bhupathi and Sania Mirza to reach the summit.

Apart from a booming serve, the Kodava counts longevity as a major asset. After capturing the 2024 Australian Open men’s doubles title alongside Matthew Ebden, Bopanna became the oldest first-time world number one. The Australian Open victory also made Bopanna the oldest Grand Slam men’s doubles champion.

These accomplishments are all the more special, given that Bopanna had to overcome severe issues with his knees in the latter stages of his career.

In 2017, Bopanna won his first Grand Slam title, playing with Canadian Gabriela Dabrowski in the French Open mixed doubles.

In all, Bopanna boasts of 26 titles on the ATP Tour, including six Masters 1000 wins.

Bopanna has long carried India’s hopes in the Davis Cup. Having made his Davis Cup debut in 2002, Bopanna oftentimes juggled singles and doubles duties for the nation. Among his highlights include a five-set win over then Japan’s teen talent Kei Nishikori in the first rubber of a 2008 Asia-Oceania Group I Davis Cup tie. In 2010, Bopanna outclassed Brazil’s top-100 player Ricardo Mello in the fifth rubber to carry India into the World Group for the first time since 1998.

Purav Raja, who has partnered Bopanna on many occasions on the tour and in the Davis Cup, spoke glowingly on Bopanna’s stellar career. “After Mahesh (Bhupathi) and Leander (Paes), there was a lull. Everybody wondered who would be the next big thing in Indian men’s tennis. This is where Bopanna rose to the challenge and became the world number one,” Raja told ‘The Hindu’ on Saturday.

Raja added that Bopanna’s success has kept India’s rich tradition in doubles alive and flourishing. “Rohan gave all Indian doubles players hope that they too can achieve the same level of success. Four persons - Leander, Mahesh, Rohan and Sania Mirza - gave us all hope. We started to believe that we could be top-50, top-40 in the world. Now we see Yuki (Bhambri) close to getting into the top-20. That is all because of what the seniors like Rohan have done. Success breeds success,” Raja said.

In 2013, Bopanna, with an eye on promoting the sport in India, launched the ‘Doubles Dream Of India’ programme in collaboration with Pune Metropolitan District Tennis Association and Indian multinational corporation KPIT Technologies.

The programme provides a support system to talented Indian tennis players, including travelling coaches and physios. Bhambri, N. Sriram Balaji and Divij Sharan are some of the players who have benefited from the scheme.

Sunder Iyer, interim secretary of the All India Tennis Association (AITA), congratulated Bopanna on playing a key role in lifting the profile of tennis in India. “We are proud of Rohan Bopanna for what he has done for the country. He has kept the tri-colour flying high for so many years,” Iyer said.

“Personally, I know him well. When he was 15, he was in Pune (training at the Nandan Bal Tennis Academy). I saw him then as a junior, and have since watched him grow into a magnificent player,” Iyer said.

“Each and everyone at AITA is proud of his achievements, and we wish him well,” Iyer said.

International Tennis Hall of Fame inductee Vijay Amritraj paid tribute to a “fantastic career”. “Rohan’s commitment to the sport, discipline on court, huge serve, and ability to play alongside an incredible number of partners is a remarkable achievement. I congratulate Rohan on a fantastic career. I truly hope that he will stay involved with the sport, and encourage and train future champions to play for India in both the Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup,” Amritraj said.

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