Leander Paes has chosen his 99th men’s doubles partner. The Indian ace will play with South African Raven Klaasen in the coming season. Paes had played with Czech Radek Stepanek before this. Paes won the 2013 US Open men’s doubles with Stepanek defeating Alexander Peya and Bruno Soares 6-1, 6-3.
Paes will partner former Grand Slam champion Martina Hingis in mixed doubles. Hingis will be Paes’ 24th mixed doubles partner. Paes, who has 14 Grand Slam victories in doubles and mixed doubles, will start with new teammates in the Australian Open.
“When I select a partner, I want him to have my weaknesses as his strengths. Raven has world-class backhand and big serves, which is a big plus for our partnership,” Paes said during a media interaction on the sidelines of the ongoing Premier Tennis League (PTL) in Pune on Tuesday.
“I will be playing with Raven in the Australian Open next year, but we are contemplating playing in a few warm-up tournaments before that. It may be Doha or Chennai,” Paes said
It was a relatively bad year for Paes as he could not even qualify for the year-end ATP World Tour Finals. It was something rare for Paes in all these years. Paes and Stepanek were not among the top eight doubles teams at London.
Paes also last finished the year outside the top 25 doubles players in the world for the first time in over 15 years. One title, no Grand Slam final, no Masters series final — 2014 has truly been a forgettable year in Paes’ long 24-year pro career.
At 41, however, Paes still wants to keep going despite the odds.
“This was a difficult year, but tennis still remains a priority… I’m an eternal optimist. I feel very motivated as I look ahead. Taking care of my daughter, my tennis, my business, creating a good environment for my family, finishing the dirty chapter of my life and getting everything sorted out. I will be strong.”Â
“Many players have expressed interest in being my 100th partner. I’ve spoken to Novak Djokovic also, he’s very keen. Let’s see who ultimately becomes my 100th partner,” Paes said in a recent interview.
With inputs from NDTVSports