My plea to leander paes

sureshmiyer · Jun 28, 2012

The problem with Indians is that public memory runs short and in a cricket crazy country like ours, we do not respect those sportspersons who have contributed for the National honor, despite the system. One such player is Leander Paes, who rose to World ranking 73 in singles and has won one ATP Tour title. Sadly, this world class player is embroiled in a controversy due to selfish co-players. One junior tennis player is reported to have questioned Leander's credentials when he asked why Leander hesitates to pair with a junior player like Vishnu Vardhan while the same Leander was accepted as a partner by Ramesh Krishnan, a tennis veteran to play doubles. I would like to remind those good for nothings that Leander Paes was number 1 in the world in junior rankings. He was the only player to win bronze medal in Singles of 1996 Atlanta Olympics. Despite this, Mahesh Bhupathi has the audacity to question Leander's ability to win medals in doubles. Failures are part and parcel of any sport but one should not ignore the efforts of truly spirited players like Leander Paes in national interest. I watched him defeating tennis legend Henri Leconte of France thus helping India to enter the semifinals of the Davis Cup in 1993. I watched him defeating Goran Ivanisevic in 1995 when India defeated Croatia. Also to his personal credit, he defeated Pete Sampras 6-3, 6-4 during the third round of Pilot Pen International hardcourt tournament sometime in 1998. For long, Leander Paes was a lone ranger in tennis and he has never complained or cribbed about anything. Playing for the National flag was his sole passion. As an ardent tennis viewer, I would request Leander Paes to skip this Olympics for National Pride is at stake.

knot2share · Jun 28, 2012

If only Leander and Mahesh Bhupati had always stuck together!

Viswamitra · Jun 28, 2012

Dear Suresh,

I never knew all these facts about Leander until I read your post. Thank you for sharing it. Otherwise, I will be carrying an impression that a prominent tennis player is refusing to encourage Junior players based on reports I read. The players who are refusing to pair with him should be considered as people who refuse to play at national level and should be banned from playing any further.

Viswa