The title in Johannesburg set us up for the 2010 season, says Rohan Bopanna who, along with his Pakistani teammate Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi, has formed a partnership to cherish.

By Bhagya L Ayyavoo

After a first-round exit at the Australian Open doubles event, Bopanna is now hoping for a longer run at the French Open.

Excerpts from an exclusive chat with Bopanna, after the Indo-Pak Express lost to the Brazilian duo of Marcelo Melo and Bruno Soares in the Nice ATP final, on Saturday.

Bhagya Ayyavoo: You guys came close to winning your second title. Any regrets?

Rohan Bopanna: Yes, it was a tad heartbreaking to miss out on another title. It would have given us the necessary momentum required, going into Roland Garros. But looking back, we did have a very good run and I think we are well prepared for the French Open.

BA: You and Aisam clinched your first title together in Johannesburg and it has been a consistent run for you two since then. What's been the secret?

RB: Well, the truth is that this is the first year that we have worked as a team and given doubles such importance. All our drills, training are modelled around improving aspects of our double's play. Besides this year we have played together on a consistent basis and that's allowed for greater learning of each other's games and better on-court chemistry.

BA: You have an ATP title and a Challenger title besides two runners-up finishes on the Tour and one more on the Challenger circuit. You have also moved up to No.54 in doubles rankings. Could you have asked for more in the first five months?

RB: The past five months have definitely been quite amazing for me. To start the year off with that title at Johannesburg was really great. It gave me a lot of confidence and as you can see our results have also been improving. It has especially helped me on clay, which is not my favourite surface. There has been a drastic improvement in our clay court showings this year.

BA: Injuries sidelined you for months last season. Fitness-wise has it been good for you, any special measures in place that's keeping you injury-free?

RB: Thankfully as of now I am fully fit and playing at 100 per cent. My trainer (Shayamal Vallabhjee) from South Africa has been with me for the past 3 years and has been making sure that I keep fit and strong.

BA: You have had some good results partnering Jarkko Nieminen, you reached the semis with Jeff Coetzee at Marseille and won a Challenger title with Ken Skupski as well. Is there some special bonding with Aisam?

RB: Yes, I have had great success while partnering these guys but Aisam and I have played so much tennis together that it just makes it easier to play together. The reason I had different partners was down to the fact that Aisam (now ranked World No.46) and I could not get into tournaments together with our rankings. We had to choose different partners to make the draw. Now we plan to play the whole year together and continue our good form.

BA: What's the feeling within and between you two during such close misses, like at the Nice ATP final?

RB: It's heartbreaking to lose knowing that you're so close to winning. We played tight matches in the finals at both Casablanca and Nice. But things didn't go our way and all we can do is learn from the mistakes we made and take the positives from the matches and move on.

BA: What are your expectations/goals from the French Open? You guys are up against Fabio Fognini and Michael Russell in the opener, have you played them earlier? How do you see your half of the draw?

RB: I have played Fabio Fognini once before. It was at the Los Angeles tour event, where I prevailed partnering Eric Butorac. I have never played Michael Russell. They both are very good clay-courters and this should provide us with an interesting match-up.