'Old is Gold' World No. 1s Novak Djokovic and Rohan Bopanna's combined age is 80

In a recent ATP social media video entitled "Old is Gold," Novak Djokovic and Rohan Bopanna the ATP World No. 1 ranked men's singles and doubles players talk about their success at the "advanced" ages of 36 and 44 respectively.

Djokovic's resume is legendary. He is the winner of 24 Grand Slams and the most accomplished men's tennis player of all time, Djokovic continues to find ways to win. He returned to the court in Monte Carlo after nearly a month off after losing at Indian Wells and played spectacular tennis on the clay.

He remains a threat to win any Grand Slam tournament and contend at the Paris Olympics. An Olympic gold medal is practically the only achievement that has eluded him in his storied career. He won a bronze medal at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

Like Djokovic, Rohan Bopanna keeps playing and winning

Rohan Bopanna is the envy of all 40-something sports fans. He is the World No. 1 doubles player at 44 years old. His two Grand Slam wins happened after he was 35, the 2017 French Open mixed doubles title and the 2024 Australian Open men's doubles title.

Bopanna also is coming off a victory at this year's Miami Open. Like Danielle Collins who is on a winning streak in 2024 at the age of 30, Bopanna (and Djokovic) show all of us that the youth movement in tennis has not completely taken over the sport. Both turned professional in 2003 and have been competing for 21 years, longer than some of their peers have been alive.

Other 30-something tennis players continue to enchant and entertain us including Andy Murray, Stan Wawrinka, and Gael Monfils. Perhaps there is something to the idea of working smarter and not harder. That does not imply these athletes are not working hard, but it does indicate that they have learned the tricks of the trade on how to treat, nourish, and rest their bodies to get the best performance out of them.

All wannabe 30, 40, and 50 or more-year-old athletes and couch potatoes should take notice. No, we will not be out winning high-profile tennis tournaments anytime soon, but maybe we can play some tennis, pickleball, or learn another activity to keep us moving.

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