Mar 13, 2025; Indian Wells, CA, USA; Ben Shelton (USA) reacts after winning a point in his quarterfinal match against Jack Draper (not pictured) in the BNP Paribas Open at the Indian Well Tennis Garden.

tennis

Ben Shelton to Team Up With Doubles Legend for ATP Rolex Monte Carlo Masters

The Monte Carlo Masters kicks off in early April.

Forming an exciting pairing, American powerhouse Ben Shelton is set to partner a doubles legend in the upcoming Rolex Monte Carlo Masters. The name in concern is 45-year-old Rohan Bopanna, who is still searching for his first title of 2025. Regardless of the result, fans can expect to see some fiery serves and forehands.

Bopanna has recently rekindled his partnership with Croatian veteran Ivan Dodig. At the recent Sunshine Double events of Indian Wells and the Miami Open, the pair tasted early defeats in the Round of 32. But at 45, Bopanna continues to show a formidable level on the doubles circuit. He is a former World No. 1 in doubles, and has two Grand Slams to his name.

Ben Shelton and Rohan Bopanna Set for Exhilarating Team-Up on the Monte Carlo Clay

Ben Shelton and Rohan Bopanna have agreed to form the pairing at the Monte Carlo Masters, as per latest reports. The event begins on April 5 up until April 13 in France. It is an exciting pairing that will enthrall fans and show them some hard-hitting doubles. Shelton will be Bopanna’s fifth doubles partner of the ongoing season.

Breaking🚨

Rohan Bopanna to partner Ben Shelton at the Rolex Monte Carlo Masters 2025, starting on 6th April.

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— RevSportz Global (@RevSportzGlobal) March 25, 2025

At the 2025 Miami Open, Ben Shelton was knocked out in his first bout in both singles and doubles. While Coleman Wong stitched together an epic run of points to dump him out of the singles draw in three sets, he partnered countryman Alex Michelsen but fell short 4-6 4-6 vs Jordan Thompson and Sebastian Korda in the men’s doubles event.

Rohan Bopanna to Lose India No. 1 Spot After Six Years

In a bitter-sweet update for Indian tennis fans, Rohan Bopanna will lose the India No. 1 tag when the rankings are released after the 2025 Miami. 32-year-old Yuki Bhambri will be his successor, having gotten the better of Rohan Bopanna at the Florida-based event in March. This brings an end to Bopanna’s 286-week reign at the helm.

Bhambri teamed up with Portugal’s Nuno Borges to beat the experienced duo of Rohan Bopanna and Ivan Dodig 6-4 3-6 10-7 in the Miami Round of 32. Although the Bhambri/Borges pair fell short in the quarterfinal stage, it was enough to make Bhambri India’s new doubles headliner.

Despite defending champion Rohan Bopanna falling short in Miami, the Monte Carlo Masters is something to look forward to. The action on the red dirt of France begins in the first week of April.

ATP

ATP Masters 1000

Ben Shelton

Ivan Dodig

Rohan Bopanna

Sebastian Korda

Tennis

Sankalp Harikrishnan

A passionate sports fan through and through, I am currently pursuing my MA in Global Sports Journalism. I specialise in tennis and football writing at The Playoffs News, and I have prior experience working at EssentiallySports and Sportskeeda. Born and raised in Bengaluru, India, sport was my safe space right from my childhood. After trying my hand at multiple sports and representing my educational institutions in cricket, badminton and table tennis, I found sports media to be my calling.