Bhupathi/Bopanna to split at the end of the 2012 season

MASON, OH – AUGUST 17: Rohan Bopanna of India returns a shot to Mariusz Fyrstenberg and Marcin Matkowski of Poland while playing with Mahesh Bhupathi of India during the Western & Southern Open at the Lindner Family Tennis Center on August 17, 2012 in Mason, Ohio.

India’s Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna will not play together on the ATP circuit in 2013. The pair, who got together at the end of last year with the aim of representing India at the London Olympic Games, have won two titles this season but flopped at the majors.

Instead, 38-year-old Bhupathi will team up with 40-year-old Canadian doubles specialist Daniel Nestor, who has split with his partner Max Mirnyi for next season. Nestor and Mirnyi played together for two years, won two Roland Garros titles, and reached No. 1.

“Max isn’t confirmed to play a full season next year, he’s a little bit skeptical about his elbow,” Nestor told the press. “It’s a little bit hard for me to wait until the last second to see what he’s going to do. So I just decided to switch.”

Nestor said he was looking forward to playing with Bhupathi next year. “He’s eager and I’ve had a lot respect for his accomplishments over the years,” commented Nestor, winner of 79 doubles titles in his career. “He’s a great doubles player and he has great doubles instincts. I feel that if he can make the transition well to the other side (the deuce court), we can be a very good team.”

There is no official word on who Bopanna will partner for the 2013 season.