Rohan Bopanna, speaking at a promotional event in Andheri on Tuesday, praised Karman Kaur Thandi after she clinched a spot in the women's singles qualifying draw at the French Open and was paired with Harmony Tan in the first round.
"She’s [Thandi] has had some major setbacks with injuries, so to see her name back on the tennis circuit, is amazing," the 46-year-old Bangalore-based doubles specialist said to mid-day on the sidelines of the Tennis Premier League event at Celebrations Sports Club.
Thandi, 27, qualified for the Roland Garros qualifying draw on Monday and, as the Sporting News noted, was the lone Indian player in that field. She was drawn against France’s Harmony Tan in the opening round of the women’s qualifying singles, with qualifying week scheduled for May 18 to 22 and Thandi likely to take the court on Tuesday, May 19.
Bopanna made the point beyond national pride: "I’m glad she’s playing the French Open because, for any Indian, when you read another Indian’s name at the highest level, that’s when the inspiration happens." He added, "I really hope she goes far at Grand Slams," and urged her to press forward: "[I hope she] keeps playing at the highest level and pushes all the limits."
The route that brought Thandi back to Paris was narrow. She returned through the protected ranking system and entered the draw on a protected ranking of 238 after a lengthy injury layoff that saw her active ranking fall to 1,467 by May 2026. Initially she stood as the 16th alternate for qualifying; withdrawals from Marketa Vondrousova, Varvara Gracheva, Veronika Kudermetova and Paula Badosa cleared enough space for her to enter.
Thandi reached a career-high of world No. 196 in August 2018, but her comeback has been tentative on paper: recent ITF results included straight-set defeats to Polina Iatcenko and Yuki Naito. Those results are the tension in this story — a former top-200 player on a protected ranking trying to translate return-to-play into wins against opponents who have stayed active.
Bopanna’s comments carried weight because he is a senior figure in Indian tennis and because his assessment frames what is at stake beyond one match. He was unequivocal about the morale effect: "For any Indian, seeing another Indian’s name at the highest level is when inspiration happens." On a lighter note he also told mid-day he is a cricket follower and "he’s a RCB fan."
The immediate next act is clear. Thandi is set to meet Harmony Tan in first-round qualifying, likely on May 19, and that match will mark the first hard measure of how far her comeback can go this fortnight. A win would keep alive the possibility of using the protected ranking to reach the main draw; a loss would leave her still on the rebuilding arc that began after the long layoff.
This is a test of form and fitness more than of headline rankings. Thandi’s protected ranking and the withdrawals that opened her the door give her a shot; her recent defeats and the gulf between 1,467 and her old peak of world No. 196 underline how much she must re-prove. Bopanna’s message — that her return is both "amazing" and potentially inspirational — is a tribute, but the scoreboard on May 19 will be the cleaner verdict.
