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Tennis legend Boris Becker was full of praise for Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden after the duo won the doubles title at the 2023 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.
The unseeded pair defeated top seeds Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski 6-3, 2-6, 10-8 in the final.
With the victory, Rohan Bopanna (43) became the oldest ATP Masters 1000 champion. It was the second title for the Indo-Australian duo and their first of the season.
Six-time Grand Slam champion Boris Becker took to Instagram to laud the pair, writing:
"Congratulations."
"I personally don’t think Novak is thinking about the Golden Slam" - Boris Becker
Boris Becker recently told Eurosport that he believes Novak Djokovic isn't thinking about the Golden Slam (a Golden Slam is achieved when a player wins all four Grand Slams in a calendar year as well as an Olympic gold medal). Instead, he believes the Serb is more focused on winning a record 23rd Major.
"I personally don’t think Novak is thinking about the Golden Slam. I think he wants to win the 23rd major of his career, which would be the record," Becker said.
Becker went on to say that while Rafael Nadal remains the favorite to win the French Open, Djokovic is 'on his heels'.
"The next major is Roland-Garros, where, in my eyes, the favorite still is Rafael Nadal. But Novak is on his heels. So let’s see what these two great champions will deliver for us," he said.
The German added that he hopes Djokovic and Nadal will continue to play for another year or two.
"I hope that Novak and Rafa will play for another year or two because we will benefit from that. They are not only tennis icons, they are not only sports icons, they are cultural icons," Becker stated.
Both Djokovic and Nadal are currently out of action. Due to his unvaccinated status, the Serb has been unable to participate in Indian Wells. He has withdrawn from next week's Miami Masters as well. Meanwhile, the Spaniard is recovering from an injury suffered during his second-round match against Mackenzie McDonald at the 2023 Australian Open.
both players are expected to make a comeback at the Monte-Carlo Masters on April 8.
