Leander Paes, one of India's most accomplished tennis players, has left an indelible mark on the sport with his exceptional career spanning three decades.
Rafael Nadal, one of the legends of the sport, hailed Paes as "one of the biggest stars of doubles.” Indeed, his partnership with Mahesh Bhupati has brought India numerous laurels including a 25-win streak in Davis Cup doubles.
Looking back on his tennis career on the occasion of his 50th birthday, Paes feels he has had a complete career.
"I was a young Leander growing up in Kolkata with a dream to become an Olympic champion and play for India in the Davis Cup or the Asian Games. Looking back now, my showcase is completely full. At the same time, the biggest thrill of my life was to play seven world record Olympics for our country. I feel blessed, humble and am also inspired to share those journeys with others," he stated to Sportstar.
TSN takes a look at a few of the biggest achievements in his illustrious career.
Won Junior US Open and Junior Wimbledon in 1990
Paes hails from Kolkata and debuted on the pro-circuit in 1991. Before that, in 1990, he won both the junior US Open and Wimbledon titles. He also grabbed the top spot in the junior rankings in the same year for his incredible performances.
He defeated Karim Alami of Morocco 6-4, 6-4 to win the US Open but his victory against Marcos Ondruska in the Junior Wimbledon final with a scoreline of 7–5, 2–6, 6–4 catapulted him to stardom.
Most doubles wins in Davis Cup history
When Paes and Rohan Bopanna beat China's Mao Xin and Zhang Ze in Davis Cup, the Kolkata-born athlete sealed his place in the history books by setting a new Davis Cup record for the most double wins.
At the age of 44, he created this record with his 43rd win. He went on to better that record with two more wins and boasts of a brilliant 45-13 record in the premier men's team event. Italy's Nicola Pietrangeli stands second with 42 triumphs in doubles in the Davis Cup.
24-match winning streak with Mahesh Bhupati in Davis Cup
Paes and Bhupathi first teamed up in 1994 and began playing together regularly in 1997. Their partnership proved to be an instant hit, and they won their first ATP Tour title together at the Chennai Open in April 1997.
Out of their 27 doubles ties in the Davis Cup, they won an impressive 24 matches consecutively. The streak began after their loss to Sweden in the 1996 World Group quarterfinal and lasted for 24 matches. Their record remains unmatched by any other active doubles team, with the closest pair being John McEnroe and Peter Fleming, who have an unbeaten streak of 14 in Davis Cup doubles.
Reached 4 Grand Slams finals in 1999; won 2
1999 proved to be a golden year for the Indian Express as the Paes & Bhupati duo reached the finals of all four Grand Slam tournaments, winning the French Open and Wimbledon in men's doubles.
This exceptional performance, along with an ATP Tour title in Chennai, propelled him to the world No. 1 ranking in men's doubles. Moreover, Paes also won Wimbledon's mixed doubles along with Lisa Raymond.
Career Grand Slams in both men's doubles and mixed doubles
Paes completed his men's doubles career grand slam when he won the Australian Open in 2012 partnering Radek Štěpánek.
It was a shock victory as they were unseeded heading into the tournament and were facing the three-time defending champions, Bob and Mike Bryan. However, they won in straight sets with a scoreline of 7-6, 6-2.
In 2016, he won the French Open along with Martina Hingis to complete his career slam in the mixed doubles category. In the final, they defeated India's Sania Mirza and Ivan Dodig. With that win, Paes also tied Martina Navratilova's record for the most major mixed doubles titles (10) in the Open Era.
Seven consecutive Olympics appearances including a Bronze medal in 1996
Paes made his Olympic debut at the Barcelona Games in 1992 when he was just 18 years old. Although he exited the singles event in the first round, he teamed up with Ramesh Krishnan to reach the quarter-finals in the men's doubles, showcasing his potential on the global stage.
Building on his experience from Barcelona, Paes diligently prepared for the Atlanta Olympics in 1996. Despite being a wild card entry, he made a memorable run in the men's singles competition.
He was drawn to play then ATP world No. 1, Pete Sampras, in the first round, but Sampras withdrew due to injury. Paes went on to defeat other opponents, including Thomas Enqvist and Nicolas Pereira, to set up a semi-final clash against Andre Agassi, the eventual gold medalist.
In the bronze medal match, he overcame Brazil's Fernando Meligeni, despite battling through a wrist injury, to secure the historic bronze medal for India. It was only the second individual medal won by an Indian -- the first was by wrestler KD Jadhav at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics.
His bronze medal in the men's singles event and his father's bronze medal in hockey at the 1972 Munich Olympics make them the only father-son Olympic medal winners from India.
Paes participated in seven Olympics in a row -- from 1992 Barcelona to 2016 Rio Games. It is the most number of Olympics by a tennis player.
Till 2016, Paes participated in every edition of the Olympics and could have even flown to Tokyo to make his eighth appearance but due to Covid-19 the tournament was postponed by a year which saw him hang up his racquet.