In the history of the chest-bump celebrations in tennis, Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden pulled off the mellowest version. It was uncoordinated and seemed like an impromptu decision. But it never really would have mattered.

With that one final smash of a tennis ball from the Bopanna racquet at the Margaret Court Arena, the pair were through to the semi-final of the Australian Open. But in the greater scheme of things, Bopanna, at the age of 43, had become the world No 1 in men’s doubles – the oldest man to ever get to that spot for the first time.

“It has been incredible,” he said after the match.

“Being in this sport for 20 years, playing these tournaments week in week out… Today, reaching this No 1 ranking is amazing. It’s a proud feeling.”

Also read: Rohan Bopanna interview: ‘I’m still able to compete at the highest level, that is a proud feeling’

This was not the only first he achieved at the Australian Open this term. This is the 17th time he is playing in the men’s doubles event in Melbourne, but the first time that he has reached the semi-final.

And it came in style.

Bopanna and Ebden, the second seeds, came up against the all-Argentinian sixth seeded team of Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni.

In a match that lasted an hour and 46 minutes, the Indo-Australian duo looked unfazed.

They won the first and only break of the match off Gonzalez’s serve in the fifth game and held on to take the first set.

Both teams were a bit more matched in the second set, requiring a tie-break to decide the outcome. But with the scores on serve at 5-6 in the tie-break, that one last ferocious Bopanna forehand smash secured the win.

Bopanna, who had won the French Open mixed doubles title in 2017, comes into 2024 on the back what he termed his best season on tour.

With Ebden as his partner, the duo reached four ATP tour finals in 2023, winning titles in Doha and Indian Wells. They also reached the final of the US Open – 13 years after Bopanna had reached the summit clash at Arthur Ashe Arena in 2010.

Also read: At the US Open, Rohan Bopanna stands tall even in defeat

Continuing in that same vein in 2024 was one of the targets he had made pre-season.

“We’re trying to take [2023’s] consistency and hopefully take it on for the next year,” he had said to Scroll ahead of the season.

Bopanna, who turns 44 in March, often joked that he has reached level 43 rather than age 43.

But not too long ago he had contemplated retiring after going through a rough spell in terms of form and fitness. But he embraced Iyengar Yoga and found a new way to strengthen his damaged knees in his tall 6-foot-4 frame.

And then his fortunes started to shift.

The man from Coorg, armed with a powerful serve and big groundstrokes, reached the semi-final of the French Open for the first time in his career in 2022.

By the start of the 2023 season, he would pair up with Ebden, a former singles world No 39, who has won the men’s doubles Wimbledon title in 2022 and has an Australian Open mixed doubles title in 2013 to his name.

And together they have forged a formidable partnership that has taken both of them to their respective career highs – Ebden is projected to get to the world No 2 spot once the rankings are updated after the Australian Open.

“I think the biggest thing was that whatever the situation, both of us had already been in that kind of situations,” Bopanna had said.

“You just take the feedback from one another and then find the right balance. No situation was overwhelming for us. There were no self-doubts. Trusting your partner was extremely important.”

What else is important is that Bopanna has found the formula to keep himself healthy in a sport that has increasingly become physically demanding.

Replug: Rohan Bopanna, wiser on court and healthy off it, finds no reason to stop after two decades on tour

He asserted that he tends to skip practice on many days in favour of recovery sessions. Keeping the body fit has been difficult, but the rewards are showing on court.

In this past week, Bopanna has gotten to places he has not before. The world No 1 spot is a coveted achievement, but now he finds himself in the semi-final of a Grand Slam.

The duo will next the team of China’s Zhang Zhizhen and Tomas Machac of the Czech Republic. He has already created history, but there is one thing still missing from his trophy cabinet – a men’s doubles Major.

And as the best player in the world in men’s doubles, he’s in prime position to get that elusive title.