Rohan Bopanna wants to break free from hotel room in Melbourne

Rohan Bopanna in 2020. Picture/ AFP

The hotel room wall is helping him get some practice and an online course keeping boredom at bay. Rohan Bopanna's build-up to the season-opening Australian Open has been far from ideal so far as he waits for his day of freedom - January 30. Bopanna, 40, was on one of the three flights out of a total of 17 Tennis Australia-arranged chartered planes, that landed in Melbourne with positive cases on board. He is in his 10th straight day of hard ‘quarantine' ever since - confined to his room.

However, the veteran, who left Bangalore on January 15 and had a 25-hour layover in Doha before reaching Melbourne, would not call it an ordeal just yet. "If you test positive, you would be in hard quarantine but what we did not know that if someone on your flight tests positive then everyone also had to be in hard quarantine. That's what happened," Bopanna told PTI from Melbourne.

"My coach Scott Davidoff was also in one of those three flights and they also told him that he can't leave for 14 days and follow hard quarantine." Bopanna has empathy for the organisers, who, he says, are facing a huge challenge in ensuring a smooth run for the competition but can't hide his own frustration either.

"We still are not allowed in any circumstances. Practice is out [of question]. Maximum I have done is against the wall in this small room. Whatever fitness I can do in this room. Luckily Tennis Australia helped with Uber Eats [app] that delivers nice food,"

he said. It's not the same for other Indians though. Ankita Raina, Sumit Nagal and Divij Sharan are getting five hours outside their rooms for on-court practice, gym sessions, eating and travelling to courts.

Bopanna said he was not prepared for such the situation he is in. What is worse is that his partner for the Australian Open - Portugal's Joao Sousa - tested positive for COVID-19, forcing him to pull out.

The Indian is now looking for a partner from among the players who are already in Melbourne. "That was unfortunate that you are getting prepared and now you are not able to step out of your room for 14 days. I get out on 30th and 31st is when the first ATP event of the season starts. Interesting past 8-9 days. 30th is the day, I get my freedom."

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