Divij Sharan is now Asia’s top-ranked doubles player

The Indian, who climbed three spots to be ranked 42nd in ATP doubles, will partner Rohan Bopanna on Tour again.

In 28 tournaments played this year, Divij Sharan paired with 10 different partners.

Divij Sharan is now the new Indian No. 1 and the top-ranked Asian player in ATP doubles.

In the latest rankings list, Divij has climbed three spots to be ranked 42nd. The 41 players ahead of him are predominantly from Europe and the U.S., with a few South Americans from Brazil and Argentina.

“It feels great to reach this milestone. It’s something that will stay with me for the rest of my life,” Divij told

PTI .

With an eye on the Tokyo Olympics, the left-handed player from Delhi had joined forces with compatriot Rohan Bopanna. The two began their partnership on a bright note, winning the Tata Open in Maharashtra, but it didn’t last long. Following a string of poor results, their rankings in 40s did not allow them to enter bigger tournaments as a team.

Read | Bopanna-Shapovalov go down fighting

Consequently, Divij was forced to switch partners throughout the season.

In 28 tournaments played this year, Divij paired with 10 different partners. He registered decent results with Brazil’s Marcelo Demoliner, with whom he reached the final of the BMW Open in Munich. He also won the St. Petersburg Open with Slovakia’s Igor Zelenay.

‘Different dynamics’

“It’s true I have played with different partners but I have had some consistent partnerships in the last 52 weeks with Artem, Rohan and Marcelo. It’s been different dynamics in all these partnerships but I have tried to focus on my game and how best I can contribute to the team,” said Divij, an employee with Indian Oil .

Divij said he and Bopanna were coming back together on Tour. “Rohan and I had to split because we were not getting into the bigger tournaments together. We are both looking forward to playing with each other at the Olympics. We will try to play some tournaments together leading up to the Games. In fact we are going to play together at the Stockholm Open next week,” Divij revealed.

Both Divij and Bopanna, who is ranked 44, are beneficiaries of the government’s Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS).