Trust vote for Lee-Hesh

Jaidip Mukerjea, who has seen Leander and Mahesh through thick and thin, is confident that the duo could do it this time, writes Sanjib Guha

Former India Davis Cup captain Jaidip Mukerjea is a happy man these days. His one-time wards Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi are united for the country. “For the sake of the motherland, they have buried all their hatchets and can win a medal. Having trained both of the, it will be a pleasing moment for me,” Mukerjea told DNA.

Mukerjea was, however, not ready to purchase the theory that they would face problem gelling with each other after having played on the circuit with different partners in the recent years. “Frankly speaking, they don’t need to play together to develop that understanding… That is already there  as they have grown up playing with each other from childhood,” Mukerjea said.

Paes had so far played four Olympics partnering Ramesh Krishnan in the first (1992 ) and Bhupathi in the next three. In 1996, and 2000, Paes-Bhupathi lost to Mark Woodforde-Todd Woodbridge pair in the second rounds while last time in Athens their dreams were shattered in the last hurdle (quarterfinals) when they were downed by Mario Ancic and Ivan Ljubicic after a thriller. With Paes having bagged a medal in the singles, it is now time for Bhupathi to have an Olympic medal against his name.

Though both Paes and Bhupathi are above their heels, Mukerjea still believes it is possible for them to grab a medal. “If Leander can live up to his potential in front of the nets and Mahesh in return of serves, they can do anything,” the former Davis Cupper felt.

When Paes was showing a lot of promise in early 90s and had already taken part in Barcelona Olympics, Mukerjea was the one who paired them for the first time. It was in a Davis Cup match against South Africa in Jaipur in 1994. Mukerjea, being a Kolkatan, faced criticism from all corners of his own state as he dropped local boy Zeeshan Ali from the team. Zeeshan is the son another Davis Cup coach Akhtar Ali.

“I had to drop Zeeshan as I wanted Mahesh in the side, who, I knew, would go places given a proper chance. The rest is history,” Mukerjea said.

Mukerjea is one of those Indians to have witnessed Paes’ medal-winning efforts in Atlanta as coach. “We did well in the doubles too with Paes-Bhupathi, before losing in the second round to the Woodies. The Woodies later went on to win the gold.”But Mukerjea is a bit worried as Paes-Bhupathi have got a tough draw. “It’s tough to play Gael Monfils and Gilles Simon in the opening round, but they can pull it off if they are at their personal best,” he stated.

The draw itself is tough for the Indians. Even if they get past the first hurdle, they may have to face the challenge of Thomas Berdych and Radek Stepanek in the next round with world’s top stars like Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer with their respective partners are also in the same half of the draw.

Knowing both from close quarters, Mukerjea is hopeful that they can make the country proud yet again but at the same time he seemed a bit concerned about their reflexes.
“They have all the ingredients to be in the medal contention…Had it been five years back, I would have said with certainty that they would do it. But now age is a factor as their reflexes are not that good as it was five years back,” Mukerjea quipped.

Last but not the least, Mukerjea is keeping his fingers crossed that both of them will give their best shot. “Both are patriotic in nature and the feeling for the country may help them achieve the dream they have been nurturing till now,” Mukerjea rounded off.