Fine wine: Elite athletes defy age with science, nutrition, mental strength

Athletes are taking elaborate measure. Biohacking, which is a combination of ice bath, sleep therapy, and strict diet and supplements, is a popular method

At the peak of the pandemic, Novak Djokovic revealed in an interview with Sky Sports that he had contemplated retirement after the gut-wrenching Australian Open quarter-final loss to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in 2010. Battling a dodgy stomach and Melbourne’s unforgiving humidity, Djokovic took a medical time-out in the fourth set. The Serb clutched his stomach after his tepid five-set loss to the Frenchman, gasping for breath and looking forlorn.

Medical time-outs were a recurring theme for Djokovic. He had retired in the 2009 Australian Open quarter-final against 

Andy Roddick.
 

At 23, with just a solitary Grand Slam title, critics began writing Djokovic’s sporting obituary. The frequent breakdowns had left him physically destroyed and mentally knackered. It seemed like a talented career would be nipped in the bud.
 

The loss to Tsonga got Djokovic thinking. He reached out to Igor Cetojevic, an expert on energetic medicine. On Cetojevic’s advice, Djokovic decided to take a series of blood tests that would change his life — and career. His blood samples showed sensitivity to gluten, a protein found in wheat and other grains.
 

Overnight, he gave up gluten, dairy products, and refined sugar. He incorporated yoga and deep breathing exercises. “I instantly felt the change. I was more energetic and refreshed,” Djokovic said in his book, Serve To Win.
 

Fourteen years later, Djokovic is arguably the fittest player on the tennis circuit. With 24 Grand Slam titles already under his belt, including three last year, he resembles a well-calibrated machine. He will turn 37 in three months, the age at which sportspersons either turn to coaching or perch themselves in the confines of the commentary box, Djokovic is out there souring young dreams.
 

After the 2023 US Open win, when a reporter asked him about retirement, Djokovic said: “Eventually one day I will leave tennis in about 23, 24 years. And there are going to be new young players coming up. Until then, I guess you'll see me a bit more.”
 

On January 29, Rohan Bopanna became the oldest man in the Open Era of tennis — it started in 1968 when professionals were accepted at the Grand Slams  — to win a Grand Slam doubles title. He achieved this feat at the age of 43 years and 329 days. He also became the doubles world No1 for the first time in his career  — the oldest man to achieve this.
 

Like Djokovic, Bopanna considered retirement from tennis in 2019 after the cartilage in both his knees had worn out. He tried Iyengar yoga, propagated and developed by BKS Iyengar, which emphasises precision and alignment through asanas. It would be instrumental in helping him go through the rigours of a professional tennis career on his wonky knees.
 

Djokovic and Bopanna are among the growing breed of elite sportspersons prolonging their careers well after the age of 35 through science, nutrition, yoga, and dollops of mental fortitude. 

40 is the new 30
 

Bopanna’s accomplished senior, Leander Paes, long considered the “Grand Old Man” of Indian tennis, hung his boots in 2020 at the age of 47. Tom Brady, the greatest NFL superstar, retired last year, at 45. England’s evergreen fast bowler, James Anderson,41, is currently on his seventh India tour. On the extreme side, there is a 106-year-old woman, Rambai, 

merrily sprinting.
 

Ajit Mapari, who has worked for more than two decades as a consultant in sports medicine and was a part of India’s medical team at the Davis Cup tie against New Zealand in 2017, says athletes are increasingly resorting to methods such as ice bath, recovery, and nutrition. 
 

“More science has percolated into sports in recent times. In the case of Bops (Bopanna), he has been training in such a way that he can achieve his peak fitness during those two weeks at the Australian Open. Along with his trainer, they would have curated a regimen where he can sustain his energy levels, and proper recovery is planned after a big match through ice baths,” Mapari told Business Standard.
 

Mapari believes Indians, compared to sportspersons from other countries, mature late – another reason why more Indians can prolong their careers. For instance, Sumit Nagal, at 26, is ‘the rising star’ of Indian tennis.
 

“Jannik Sinner won his first Grand Slam at the age of 22. Carlos Alcaraz is only 20, and he has already won two Grand Slams. Bopanna, on the other hand, began playing competitive tennis at 21. It took Nagal close to a decade to just enter the main draw,” Mapari elaborated.
 

Others such as Brady are taking elaborate measures to tame the clock. Biohacking, a combination of ice bath, sleep therapy, and strict diet and supplements is a popular method. Amal Manohar, a fitness trainer and Indian cricketer Sanju Samson’s batchmate at Thiruvananthapuram’s Mar Ivanios College, defines biohacking as a process in which all personal data and parameters of an athlete are collected, following which a specialised training module is formulated.
 

“It includes transformation in diet, and even reducing screen time so that sleep patterns are not disrupted,” says Manohar, who has also worked with ace shuttler HS Prannoy.

Wanted to eat bedsheets: Kohli
 

Virat Kohli, the Indian cricketing talisman, found a way early in his career to shed cherubic fat and achieve envious fitness levels by maintaining the abstinence of a monk. In an interview with former England captain Michael Vaughan for The Daily Telegraph, Kohli provided a peek into his lifestyle: “For the first two months [after changing my diet], I felt I wanted to eat the bedsheets when I went to sleep because I was so hungry. I was craving taste… craving delicious food. But when I woke up in the morning, I felt I had more energy.”
 

Kohli is 35, and, like Djokovic, not thinking about retirement. His childhood friends say he has set his sights on the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, when cricket will return to the summer games after 128 years. 
 

Anderson is another to have aged like fine wine. At 41, the fast bowler — a breed known to have short careers — had India’s batters in strife in the recent Test match in Visakhapatnam. With a scarcely believable tally of 695 scalps from 184 Tests, he has increasingly focused on improving his running technique. Armed with a modest gym at his Burnley residence, a series of Romanian deadlifts and twists have kept Anderson’s body supple. At the end of the home season last year, cricket’s ageless wonder used the public running track next to Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium to perfect his new bowling run-up.
 

Like Anderson, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, football’s virtuoso, seems to be taking regular sips from the fountain of youth. Cold showers and cherry juice, the latter known to have anti-inflammatory properties, combined with seven hours of sleep everyday are Ibrahimovic’s secrets.

Sleep is perhaps the most underrated tool for longevity and fitness. Bopanna has spoken about how 15-minute power naps before high-profile matches keep him refreshed. 

Mind games
 

In the past, too, many continued to pursue sporting careers while long in the tooth. C K Nayudu was nearly 37 when he captained in India’s first Test in 1932. Pancho Gonzales was 41 when he played what was at the time the longest ever match at Wimbledon, in 1969. But sports were a different ballgame back then — less demanding physically and with kinder schedules. The way things have evolved, the mental side has become as important as physical.
 

Continuing to play past the age of 35 is not merely dictated by the insatiable hunger to win trophies, medals, and championships. It also comes from a deep-rooted love of the game. But pushing yourself physically at that age could come at the cost of mental breakdowns.
 

A 2022 study on more than 500 Olympic and Paralympic athletes found that around 20 per cent experienced high levels of psychological distress. In December last year, England’s rugby captain Owen Farrel said he was stepping away from the game to prioritise mental health.
 

“For sportspersons, mental wellbeing is as important as physical fitness. Most high-level athletes have a personal psychologist who keeps them motivated,” says Manohar. “For instance, a psychologist could be advising a player on how to recuperate from a defeat, for others it could be something else. It is a deep dive and not a one-size-fits-all approach.”
 

In the popular podcast, The Other Side With Dilip, when Bopanna was asked how one decides whether it is time to stop or stay at it, he answered with candour: “I am now at such a happy place where I always wanted to be. So, I’m enjoying that. There is no time to pause. I can’t tell myself to take three months off and come back, because tennis as a sport is something that you need to be constantly playing.”
 

In 2022, when the titan of tennis Roger Federer announced his retirement at the age of 41, his parting words were: “The bitterness: You always want to play forever.”

AGE NO BAR
 

Tom Brady, American football legend, retired last year at the age of 45, having played 23 seasons

LeBron James, the oldest NBA player in the 2023-24 season, turned 39 in December, and has played 21 seasons 
 

Kelly Slater is more than 50 years old and still a regular in the World Surfing League; he won his first world championship in 1992, at the age of 20
 

Andrew Hoy competed at the Tokyo 2020 Games in equestrian events at 62; he won a silver in a team event
 

Rambai, 106 years old, won three sprint golds and a third in shot put at the National Open Athletics Championships in Dehradun in June last year

Back home, Mithali Raj was 39 when she retired from cricket after 23 years at the top