Paes continues attack on Bopanna and Sania, saying his competitors are 'highly jealous' of his success
The battle lines have been drawn. And from here on, it's unlikely that the oft-repeated diplomatic path of "we're cordial" will be spoken again between three of the biggest stars of Indian tennis.
Leander Paes fired the first salvo on Saturday night after his Davis Cup doubles loss, making it aptly clear that, according to him, India did not send their best mixed doubles team for the Rio Olympics. He reckoned he should have played with Sania Mirza, and not his doubles partner Rohan Bopanna.
Sania, though, was in no mood to return the favour, indirectly calling Paes "a toxic person" in a tweet on Sunday afternoon. Bopanna, who shares a great rapport with Sania both on and off the court, retweeted his friend, and had a few more words to hit back with in the evening: "At it again!! ...the usual ploy to stay in the news by slanging fellow players in media. #Patriotism."
Well, Paes was at it again on Monday. The 43-year-old upped his ante in attacking his lesser-experienced compatriots, appearing to call them "highly jealous" without naming them.
"In this part of my career, most of my competitors are highly jealous. They might not understand what it takes to win 18 Grand Slams and play seven Olympics. Some competitors, you give them 10 life times, they will still not be able to achieve that," Paes said on Monday.
Paes had earned high praise from all quarters for the way he played against the mighty Spaniards in the doubles tie on Saturday, matching Rafael Nadal and Feliciano Lopez in terms of skills, agility and fitness. However, his comments in the post-match press conference started the ugly confrontations between the trio.
"Instead of working hard, they want to knock me down," Paes said about being at the receiving end of the attack from the duo. "They want to ruin my reputation by doing ulterior things, so that the perception of the public is that Leander is a bad man. It takes a whole lifetime to build a reputation and it takes one second to ruin it.
"In this modern age of social media, I understand there will be some negativity. The people who are true and honest, whether they are good with me or not, I respect them. (A) few people are always trying to tarnish my reputation," the veteran Indian added.
The trio have had their share of differences in the past as well, but with the bitterness getting to such an extent, it will be almost impossible to imagine Sania and Bopanna playing with Paes ever again. As things stand, the two men are still the country's best bet in doubles in terms of quality as well as rankings, but the All India Tennis Association selectors may now have to look at changing the combination.
Paes had hinted about taking young Saketh Myneni under his wings and forging a partnership with him in the future. But with Bopanna being the highest ranked Indian in men's doubles (18th), it will be difficult to nudge him away. And, Paes is adamant that he is not going anywhere for now.
"In this modern age of living in limelight, everybody wants to be a hero. People will bark, let them bark, they will look bad themselves. I will run my race. Till a junior comes and says, 'Lee, I am beating you all the time', till I am winning Grand Slams, I will continue to play. I had to earn it and others will also have to earn it."
Rest assured, the grand circus of Indian tennis is not ending anytime soon.
SERIES OF SALVOS
Since India lost the Davis Cup doubles tie on Saturday night, Leander Paes, Rohan Bopanna and Sania Mirza have been engaged in an ugly war of words...
Saturday night: Paes says India did not send their best mixed doubles team for the Rio Olympics. "I can very clearly say that in this Olympics and last Olympics (2012 London), we didn't put the best team forward," he says.
Sunday afternoon: Sania Mirza takes an indirect jibe at Paes, with whom she partnered in the 2012 Games. ""The ONLY way to win with a toxic person, is not to play!!! #karmaiswatching #zenmode," she tweets. Rohan Bopanna retweets it.
Sunday evening: Not satisfied with just the retweet, Bopanna decides to get into the act as well. He tweets: "At it again!! ...the usual ploy to stay in the news by slanging fellow players in media. #Patriotism."
Monday: Paes takes his criticism of Sania and Bopanna a gear up, saying the two are "highly jealous" of their senior compatriot and are out to tarnish his reputation.
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