London: Rohan Bopanna is still unaware of the Indian Sports Ministry’s directive that he needs to find a suitable partner with the Rio 2016 Olympic Games in mind.
According to news making the rounds, the Union sports minister Sarbananda Sonowal has reportedly asked Leander Paes, Bopanna and Sania Mirza to make their choices of doubles partners and begin playing on the international circuit as pairs by the start of the new season.
All three players are part of the ministry’s Target Olympic Podium (ToP) scheme which funds potential medal winners. It is understood that Mirza and Bopanna have already submitted proposals for financial assistance.
Bopanna, however, was totally unaware of the directive from the sports ministry that he ought to play alongside a fellow Indian at the start of the 2016 season keeping the Rio Olympic Games in mind. “We [Mergea and Bopanna] are playing together next season. I have not heard anything from the sports ministry,” Bopanna said.
The ministry is keen that the pairings are finalised early to prevent a relapse of the unsavoury incidents that marred the run-up to the London Olympics three years ago. Paes, Mahesh Bhupathi and Bopanna were at the forefront of a selection row that finally saw Bhupathi and Bopanna pairing up for the 2012 Games at the expense of Paes — who was subsequently asked to partner rookie Vishnu Vardhan.
Paes and Bopanna are the two Indians who are currently figuring in the men’s doubles. As per rules, players who seek an entry into the Olympic Games must be a part of a nominated team for three Fed/Davis Cup events from 2013 to 2016.
This requirement may be reduced to two Fed/Davis Cup events in the three years if their nation has competed at the Zone Group level for three of the four years, or if the player has represented the country at least 20 times. Another criterion is that all players must have been part of a nominated team for a Fed/Davis Cup event in 2015-2016, and also have a good standing with their National Olympic Committee.
Bopanna and Mergea came together as a doubles pair in April this season, and did well to qualify as the eighth and final pair for the year-end competition here this week. “We have been playing great together as a pair, and we will see what needs to be done when the time comes,” he shrugged.
“As far as I am concerned, there are only two Indians playing doubles on the Tour and we need to look at individual rankings before we decide who will play with whom in Rio,” Bopanna said.
“Right now, it is going to be one week at a time. We have won our first match and we ought to see how far we can go this week. The Olympic Games are still far away,” he added.
At Olympic Games, each NOC can enter six men and six women with a maximum of four entries in the individual competitions and two pairs in the doubles. Any player in the top 56 is eligible, and NOCs have the option to enter players of a lower rank.
Players are allowed to compete in both singles and doubles events. The doubles players within the top-10 rankings as of June 11, are eligible to bring along any player provided his partner has any doubles or singles ranking, and the number of players of the same country do not surpass the total of six.
