Leander Paes facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Leander Paes
OLY

Paes at the 2016 US Open
Country (sports)	India
Residence	Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Born	(1973-06-17) 17 June 1973 (age 52) Calcutta, West Bengal, India
Height	1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Turned pro	1991
Retired	2020
Plays	Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Prize money	$8,587,586
Int. Tennis HoF	2024 (member page)
Singles
Career record	101–99 (50.5%)
Career titles	1
Highest ranking	No. 73 (24 August 1998)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open	2R (1997, 2000)
French Open	2R (1997)
Wimbledon	2R (2001)
US Open	3R (1997)
Other tournaments
Olympic Games	(1996)
Doubles
Career record	770–457 (62.75%)
Career titles	55
Highest ranking	No. 1 (21 June 1999)
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian Open	W (2012)
French Open	W (1999, 2001, 2009)
Wimbledon	W (1999)
US Open	W (2006, 2009, 2013)
Other doubles tournaments
Tour Finals	F (1997, 1999, 2000, 2005)
Olympic Games	SF – 4th (2004)
Mixed doubles
Career titles	10
Grand Slam mixed doubles results
Australian Open	W (2003, 2010, 2015)
French Open	W (2016)
Wimbledon	W (1999, 2003, 2010, 2015)
US Open	W (2008, 2015)
Other mixed doubles tournaments
Olympic Games	QF (2012)
Team competitions
Political party	All India Trinamool Congress (2021—present)
Parents	Vece Paes (father) Jennifer Paes (mother)
Relatives	Michael Madhusudan Dutt (great-great grandfather)
Medal record Representing  India Men's tennis Olympic Games Bronze 1996 Atlanta Singles Commonwealth Games Bronze 2010 Delhi Men's doubles Asian Games Gold 1994 Hiroshima Men's doubles Gold 1994 Hiroshima Men's team Gold 2002 Busan Men's doubles Gold 2006 Doha Men's doubles Gold 2006 Doha Mixed doubles Bronze 1990 Beijing Men's team Bronze 1994 Hiroshima Men's singles Bronze 2002 Busan Mixed doubles

Leander Adrian Paes (born June 17, 1973) is a famous Indian tennis player. He is the first Asian man to join the International Tennis Hall of Fame. Many people think he is one of the best doubles tennis players ever. He holds the record for the most doubles wins in the Davis Cup.

Leander won 8 men's doubles and 10 mixed doubles Grand Slam titles. He achieved a "Career Grand Slam" in both men's doubles and mixed doubles. This means he won all four major Grand Slam tournaments at least once in both categories. He is one of only three men in the Open Era to do this. In 1999, he won both the men's and mixed doubles at Wimbledon.

With his partner Mahesh Bhupathi, they were the first pair in the Open Era to reach the men's doubles finals of all four Grand Slams in one year (1999). His mixed doubles Wimbledon title in 2015 made him the second man (after Rod Laver) to win Wimbledon titles in three different decades. He also won a French Open title in three different decades in 2016.

Paes has received many top awards in India for his amazing tennis career. These include the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna (India's highest sports honor) in 1996–97. He also received the Arjuna Award in 1990, the Padma Shri in 2001, and the Padma Bhushan in 2014.

He won a bronze medal for India in men's singles at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. This made him the first Asian to win an Olympic tennis medal. He is also the only Indian to achieve this so far. Leander competed in seven Olympic Games from 1992 to 2016. This makes him the first Indian and the only tennis player to play in so many Olympics.

He is also the most successful male tennis player in Asian Games history. He won 5 gold and 3 bronze medals. He won medals in every category: singles, doubles, mixed doubles, and team events. He is the Indian athlete with the most gold medals across all sports in Asian Games history.

Leander was also the captain of the Davis Cup team. Besides his record 45 doubles wins, he has the fourth-highest number of overall wins in Davis Cup history. He has 93 total victories in singles and doubles over a 30-year career for India. He won matches in four different decades. He played for the Washington Kastles in World TeamTennis. He was part of their championship teams multiple times and was named Male MVP in 2009 and 2011.

Paes stopped playing professional tennis in 2020. His last match was a Davis Cup tie in Croatia. He holds a world record for spending 1295 weeks ranked in the Top 100 in men's doubles. On July 20, 2024, he was honored by being inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.

Early Life and Junior Career

Leander Paes was born in Calcutta, India, on June 17, 1973. His father, Vece Paes, is from Goa, and his mother, Jennifer Paes, is from Calcutta. He went to schools like La Martiniere Calcutta and St. Xavier's College.

Both of his parents were athletes. His father, Vece, was part of the Indian field hockey team that won a bronze medal at the 1972 Munich Olympics. His mother was the captain of the Indian basketball team in 1980. Leander is also related to the famous Bengali poet Michael Madhusudan Dutta through his mother.

In 1985, Leander joined the Britannia Amritraj Tennis Academy in Madras (now Chennai). He was coached by Dave O'Meara there. Leander became well-known internationally when he won the 1990 Wimbledon Junior title. He became the No. 1 junior player in the world at age 17.

Professional Tennis Career

Starting Out (1991–1997)

Leander Paes won junior titles at the US Open and Wimbledon. He became a professional tennis player in 1991. In 1992, he reached the quarter-finals of the doubles event at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics with Ramesh Krishnan.

At the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, he won a bronze medal in men's singles. He beat Fernando Meligeni in a tough match. This was the first individual Olympic medal for India since 1952. Leander said this was one of his best matches, especially because he played with a wrist injury. For this achievement, he received India's highest sports award, the Khel Ratna, in 1996.

His first successful year on the ATP tour was 1993. He reached the US Open doubles semifinal with Sébastien Lareau. In 1996, he started playing with fellow Indian player Mahesh Bhupathi. In 1997, they had a much better year, reaching the US Open semifinals. Leander's doubles ranking went from No. 89 to No. 14 that year. He also had his best singles performance at a Grand Slam, reaching the third round of the 1997 US Open.

Becoming a Doubles Star (1998–2002)

The team of Paes and Bhupathi became very strong in 1998. They reached the semifinals of three Grand Slams: the Australian Open, the French Open, and the US Open. Leander also had two big singles results that year. He won his only ATP singles title in Newport. He also famously beat Pete Sampras, a top player, 6–3, 6–4 at a tournament in New Haven.

In 1999, Paes and Bhupathi reached the finals of all four Grand Slams. They won Wimbledon and the French Open. This made them the first Indian players to win a doubles event at a Grand Slam. Leander also won the mixed doubles event at Wimbledon with Lisa Raymond. This year, he became the No. 1 doubles player in the world.

At the Sydney Olympics in 2000, Paes and Bhupathi lost in the second round. Leander had the honor of carrying the Indian Flag at the opening ceremony. In 2001, even though they won the French Open, Paes and Bhupathi had early exits in the other three Grand Slams. The Government of India awarded Paes the Padmashri in 2001. In 2002, Paes and Bhupathi won the gold medal at the 2002 Asian Games in Busan.

Leander Paes and Martina Navratilova playing mixed doubles.

Later Career Highlights (2003–2020)

After 2003, Leander focused more on doubles tennis. In 2003, he won the mixed doubles events at the Australian Open and Wimbledon with the legendary Martina Navratilova. Later that year, he had to miss the US Open due to a parasitic brain infection. He recovered by the end of the year.

At the Athens Olympic Games in 2004, he teamed up with Bhupathi again. They reached the semifinals but did not win a medal. His next Grand Slam win was the US Open doubles event in 2006 with Martin Damm. Paes led the Indian tennis team at the 2006 Doha Asian Games. He won two gold medals there: in men's doubles (with Bhupathi) and mixed doubles (with Sania Mirza).

In 2008, Paes and Bhupathi played in the men's doubles at the Beijing Olympics. They lost in the quarter-finals to Roger Federer and Stanislas Wawrinka. Later that year, Leander won the 2008 US Open mixed doubles title with Cara Black.

In 2009, he won the French Open and US Open men's doubles titles with Lukáš Dlouhý. He also reached the mixed doubles final at the US Open. He started 2010 well by winning the Australian Open mixed doubles title with Cara Black. This was their third Grand Slam final in a row.

In 2012, Paes partnered with Radek Štěpánek and won the Australian Open men's doubles. This completed his "Career Grand Slam" in men's doubles. He then won the Miami Masters for the third time in a row with Štěpánek. At the 2012 Summer Olympics, Paes and his partner Vishnu Vardhan lost in the second round. Paes and Štěpánek also reached the US Open final in 2012 but lost to the Bryan brothers.

Paes and Štěpánek won the 2013 US Open. This was Paes' third US Open men's doubles title and his 14th Grand Slam title overall. He became the oldest man to win a Grand Slam title at that time, being over 40 years old. In January 2014, the Indian government gave him the Padma Bhushan, a high civilian award.

In 2015, Paes won his 55th tour-level title in Auckland. On February 1, he won his seventh Grand Slam mixed doubles title at the 2015 Australian Open with Martina Hingis. This was his 15th major title overall. At Wimbledon 2015, Paes and Hingis won the mixed doubles championship again. This was his fourth Wimbledon mixed doubles title, tying a record. On September 12, 2015, Paes won the mixed doubles at the 2015 US Open with Hingis.

On June 3, 2016, Leander Paes completed his "Career Grand Slam" in mixed doubles by winning the 2016 French Open with Hingis. This made him one of only three men in the Open Era to achieve this in both men's and mixed doubles. He also broke the record for most Grand Slam mixed doubles titles. Paes played in the 2016 Summer Olympics men's doubles with Rohan Bopanna, but they lost in the first round.

Paes continued to play in 2017 and 2018, partnering with different players. In 2018, he became the most successful player in Davis Cup history with his 43rd doubles victory. He played in several Challenger tournaments in 2019. He became the oldest ATP Tour semi-finalist since 2006 when he reached the semi-finals of the Hall of Fame Championship. Leander Paes officially retired from professional tennis in 2020.

Davis Cup Achievements

Leander Paes started his Davis Cup career in 1990. He played a big part in the Indian team reaching the World Group from 1991 to 1998. He helped the Indian team reach the semifinals in 1993. He had important singles wins against top players like Arnaud Boetsch, Henri Leconte, Wayne Ferreira, and Goran Ivanišević. He also had many successful doubles partnerships in the Davis Cup.

Playing Style

Leander Paes is known for his unique playing style. He changes his game during a match to keep opponents guessing. He is considered one of the best at hitting volleys (shots hit before the ball bounces). He is also very good at hitting drop shots, which are soft shots that barely cross the net. He uses a one-handed backhand and often slices the ball instead of hitting it hard.

Partnership with Mahesh Bhupathi

Leander Paes and his longtime doubles partner Mahesh Bhupathi.

The team of Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi was famously called the "Indian Express." Their partnership often got a lot of attention in India. They had a very successful career together, with a record of 303 wins and 103 losses. They also hold a Davis Cup record for the longest doubles winning streak, with 24 straight wins.

In 2011, they reunited to play in a Grand Slam tournament after nine years. They finished as runners-up at the 2011 Australian Open. In 2012, Paes played with Vishnu Vardhan at the London Olympics. This was because Bhupathi and Bopanna chose not to play with him. Paes and Vardhan reached the second round of the tournament.

In 2021, a documentary called Break Point was made about the ups and downs of their relationship.

Other Activities

In 2010, Leander joined the Board of Directors of Olympic Gold Quest. This foundation helps support talented Indian athletes.

Acting Career

Leander Paes also tried acting. He made his film debut in a movie called Rajdhani Express. It was a socio-political thriller.

Images for kids

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  Signature of Leander Paes

See also

In Spanish: Leander Paes para niños