India’s Bopanna calls for Indo-Pak tennis

Indian tennis ace Rohan Bopanna used a visit to Pakistan on Thursday to call for cross-border tennis in a bid to raise the profile of a sport overshadowed by cricket in south Asia.The 31-year-old from Bangalore travelled to Pakistan to attend the wedding of his former Pakistani doubles partner Aisam-ul Haq Qureshi this week.“It’s nice to be in Pakistan and I hope we resume tennis between the two countries which in turn would increase interest in the sport in both the countries,” Bopanna told reporters. Indian-Pakistan sporting ties ended with the 2008 terror attacks on Mumbai.Bopanna and Qureshi have been poster boys for Indian-Pakistani rapprochement at a time of deep suspicion between the nuclear-armed rivals.Last month the pair parted ways as Bopanna wanted to find an Indian partner in a bid to qualify for next year’s London Olympics. “We are good friends and will remain good friends,” said Bopanna.