Mahesh Bhupathi facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Mahesh Bhupathi

Bhupathi at the 2009 US Open
Full name	Mahesh Shrinivas Bhupathi
Country (sports)	India
Born	(1974-06-07) 7 June 1974 (age 51) Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Turned pro	1995
Retired	2016
College	Ole Miss
Prize money	US$6,665,907
Singles
Career record	10–28
Career titles	0
Highest ranking	No. 217 (2 February 1998)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open	Q2 (1998)
French Open	Q3 (1996, 1999)
Wimbledon	1R (1997, 1998, 2000)
US Open	1R (1995)
Doubles
Career record	687–364
Career titles	52
Highest ranking	No. 1 (26 April 1999)
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian Open	F (1999, 2009, 2011)
French Open	W (1999, 2001)
Wimbledon	W (1999)
US Open	W (2002)
Other doubles tournaments
Tour Finals	F (1997, 1999, 2000, 2010, 2012)
Olympic Games	SF – 4th (2004)
Mixed doubles
Career record	115–53
Career titles	8
Grand Slam mixed doubles results
Australian Open	W (2006, 2009)
French Open	W (1997, 2012)
Wimbledon	W (2002, 2005)
US Open	W (1999, 2005)
Team competitions
Davis Cup	QF (1996)
Medal record Representing  India Men's tennis Asian Games Gold 2002 Busan Doubles Gold 2006 Doha Doubles Silver 2002 Busan Mixed doubles Bronze 1998 Bangkok Singles Bronze 1998 Bangkok Team Event Bronze 1998 Bangkok Mixed doubles Commonwealth Games Bronze 2010 Delhi Doubles Afro-Asian Games Gold 2003 Hyderabad Doubles Gold 2003 Hyderabad Mixed doubles

Mahesh Shrinivas Bhupathi (born 7 June 1974) is a famous Indian former tennis player. He was once ranked the world's number one in doubles. In 1997, he made history by becoming the first Indian to win a major tennis tournament, called a Grand Slam, with his partner Rika Hiraki.

Mahesh Bhupathi is also one of only eight male tennis players to have won a "career Grand Slam" in mixed doubles. This means he won all four major mixed doubles titles at least once. He also started the International Premier Tennis League. In 2017, he became the captain of India's Davis Cup team.

Tennis Career Highlights

Mahesh Bhupathi is known as one of the best doubles tennis players from the 1990s and 2000s.

Early Success (1995–2006)

In 1999, Bhupathi and his partner Leander Paes won three big doubles titles. These included the French Open and Wimbledon. They were the first doubles team to reach the finals of all four Grand Slams in the same year since 1952. On April 26, 1999, they became the world's number one doubles team.

Bhupathi also won the US Open mixed doubles title with Ai Sugiyama of Japan. In 2006, he teamed up with Martina Hingis to win the Australian Open mixed doubles. This win was special because it meant Bhupathi had won all four Grand Slam mixed doubles titles in his career.

Later Years (2007–2012)

In 2007, Bhupathi and his partner Radek Štěpánek reached the quarterfinals of the 2007 Australian Open men's doubles. They also made it to the semifinals of the 2007 French Open. Later that year, Bhupathi won tournaments with other partners like Pavel Vízner and Nenad Zimonjić.

In 2009, Bhupathi and fellow Indian player Sania Mirza won the mixed doubles title at the Australian Open. They beat their opponents 6–3, 6–1 in the final. This was Bhupathi's seventh mixed doubles Grand Slam title.

In 2011, Bhupathi reunited with his old partner Leander Paes for the 2011 Australian Open. They reached the final but lost to the famous Bryan brothers. In 2012, Bhupathi and Sania Mirza won the French Open mixed doubles title together. Later that year, Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna won the Paris Masters cup.

Bhupathi serving during a match at the 2008 US Open.

Playing Style

Mahesh Bhupathi is known for his very strong serves in tennis. Other famous players, like Rafael Nadal, have said that Bhupathi's strong backhand shot makes him great at playing on the "Ad Court" (the left side of the court). Roger Federer has called him one of the best doubles players ever. Bhupathi often talks about game plans with his partner during matches.

Important Matches

Mahesh Bhupathi played in many important finals during his career. Here are some of his major wins and losses in Grand Slam tournaments.

Men's Doubles Finals

Result	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Loss	1999	Australian Open	Hard	Leander Paes	Jonas Björkman Pat Rafter	3–6, 6–4, 4–6, 7–6(12–10), 4–6
Win	1999	French Open	Clay	Leander Paes	Goran Ivanišević Jeff Tarango	6–2, 7–5
Win	1999	Wimbledon	Grass	Leander Paes	Paul Haarhuis Jared Palmer	6–7(10–12), 6–3, 6–4, 7–6(7–4)
Loss	1999	US Open	Hard	Leander Paes	Alex O'Brien Sébastien Lareau	6–7(7–9), 4–6
Win	2001	French Open (2)	Clay	Leander Paes	Petr Pála Pavel Vízner	7–6(7–5), 6–3
Win	2002	US Open	Hard	Max Mirnyi	Jiří Novák Radek Štěpánek	6–3, 3–6, 6–4
Loss	2003	Wimbledon	Grass	Max Mirnyi	Jonas Björkman Todd Woodbridge	6–3, 3–6, 6–7(4–7), 3–6
Loss	2009	Australian Open	Hard	Mark Knowles	Bob Bryan Mike Bryan	6–2, 5–7, 0–6
Loss	2009	US Open	Hard	Mark Knowles	Lukáš Dlouhý Leander Paes	6–3, 3–6, 2–6
Loss	2011	Australian Open	Hard	Leander Paes	Bob Bryan Mike Bryan	3–6, 4–6

Mixed Doubles Finals

Mahesh Bhupathi won 8 mixed doubles titles and was a runner-up 4 times. By winning the 2006 Australian Open, he completed a "Career Grand Slam" in mixed doubles. This means he won each of the four major mixed doubles tournaments at least once. He was the eighth male player in history to do this.

Result	Year	Championship	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Win	1997	French Open	Clay	Rika Hiraki	Lisa Raymond Patrick Galbraith	6–4, 6–1
Loss	1998	Wimbledon	Grass	Mirjana Lučić	Serena Williams Max Mirnyi	4–6, 4–6
Win	1999	US Open	Hard	Ai Sugiyama	Kimberly Po Donald Johnson	6–4, 6–4
Win	2002	Wimbledon	Grass	Elena Likhovtseva	Daniela Hantuchová Kevin Ullyett	6–2, 1–6, 6–1
Loss	2003	French Open	Clay	Elena Likhovtseva	Lisa Raymond Mike Bryan	3–6, 4–6
Win	2005	Wimbledon (2)	Grass	Mary Pierce	Tatiana Perebiynis Paul Hanley	6–4, 6–2
Win	2005	US Open (2)	Hard	Daniela Hantuchová	Katarina Srebotnik Nenad Zimonjić	6–4, 6–2
Win	2006	Australian Open	Hard	Martina Hingis	Elena Likhovtseva Daniel Nestor	6–3, 6–3
Loss	2008	Australian Open	Hard	Sania Mirza	Sun Tiantian Nenad Zimonjić	6–7(4–7), 4–6
Win	2009	Australian Open (2)	Hard	Sania Mirza	Nathalie Dechy Andy Ram	6–3, 6–1
Loss	2011	Wimbledon	Grass	Elena Vesnina	Iveta Benešová Jürgen Melzer	3–6, 2–6
Win	2012	French Open (2)	Clay	Sania Mirza	Klaudia Jans-Ignacik Santiago González	7–6(7–3), 6–1

Davis Cup and Asian Games

Mahesh Bhupathi has played for India many times in team events like the Davis Cup and the Asian Games.

He played 55 matches for India in the Davis Cup from 1995 to 2011. He won 35 of these matches, and 27 of his wins were in doubles. In 2006, Bhupathi and Leander Paes won the doubles championship at the Asian Games in Doha.

Personal Life

In 2001, Mahesh Bhupathi received the Padma Shri, which is one of India's highest awards for citizens. He studied at the University of Mississippi in the United States. In 2002, he started his own company called Globosport India, which helps manage sports and entertainment careers.

Mahesh Bhupathi married model Shvetha Jaishankar in 2002, but they divorced in 2009. He then married Miss Universe 2000 Lara Dutta in 2011. Their daughter, Saira, was born in 2012. In 2010, Mahesh and Lara also started a film production company called Big Daddy Productions. In 2014, Mahesh launched an Indian sports brand called ZEVEN.

Partnership with Leander Paes

Bhupathi and Leander Paes were a very successful doubles team. They played together in the men's doubles at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. They reached the quarterfinals but lost to Roger Federer and Stanislas Wawrinka.

Paes and Bhupathi decided to play together again at the Australian Open in 2011 after not playing together for nine years. They reached the finals but lost to the American Bryan brothers. They have a great record together, winning 303 matches and losing 103. They also hold a Davis Cup record for the longest winning streak in doubles, with 23 wins in a row.

For the London Olympics in 2012, there was some discussion about who Paes and Bhupathi would play with. In the end, two Indian teams were sent: Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna as one team, and Leander Paes with Vishnu Vardhan as the other. Bhupathi and Bopanna lost in the second round.

International Premier Tennis League

Mahesh Bhupathi announced the creation of the International Premier Tennis League (IPTL) in 2013. The idea was to start a tennis league with teams in Asia, similar to the Indian Premier League in cricket. The first season began in November 2014.

Awards and Recognition

• Padma Shri, 2001
• Sports people for Change Karmaveer Puraskaar, 2007
• Davis Cup Commitment Award

Images for kids

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  Bhupathi at the 2009 US Open

• 

  Bhupathi serving in his third-round match partnering Mark Knowles during the 2008 US Open.

• 

  Bhupathi (right) and Leander Paes

See also

In Spanish: Mahesh Bhupathi para niños Forca Kochi FC