Leander Paes | How India's greatest Olympic hero turned into its biggest villain

It was supposed to be the perfect swansong for India's greatest Olympic athlete. A man, who ended India’s four-decade long barren run of medals in the Olympics in Atlanta in 1996, deserved to make his last hurrah in the Olympics at Rio. A record seventh appearance made it even sweeter. But, it all came crashing down all too soon, and the exit of Paes and Bopanna in the first round has left every Indian with a bitter taste in his mouth. A story which started with politics and controversies ended with even more surrounding it.

I have much admiration for Leander Paes and his many achievements but I do not believe our styles of play are either compatible or complementary."

Rohan Bopanna

Also, read: Birth of a legend: Leander Paes at the Atlanta Olympics

Cajoling and manoeuvring by the AITA ensued, and the selection committee opted to pair up Paes and Bopanna in the men’s doubles event with the duo being India’s “best-bet” for a medal in the event. Bopanna and Sania were selected to pair up in the mixed doubles event, and it seemed that everything will be fine come Rio.

The World Team Tennis tournament in the USA kept Leander Paes busy as Bopanna went around the courts in Rio to find a training partner. In fact, the Indian tennis team did not even have a clue about when Paes will arrive. His partner Bopanna and captain Zeeshan Ali had smiled helplessly when they were asked when Paes would arrive.

When he finally arrived on Thursday evening at Rio, the controversy about a room took over the news. Whether Leander Paes refused to stay with Rohan Bopanna or not is immaterial, but arriving just two days before the first game did no favour to enhance the reputation of the former Olympic medallist. The veteran then blamed the media for “baseless reporting” and took a pot-shot at Bopanna and Mirza for arriving early.

“I was playing and winning so I was not here to practice. And they (Bopanna or other India players) came early because they lost early. It was certainly not because they were here to play together,” Paes had said.

It was a ridiculous comment from a veteran of seven Olympics. With the comment, he not only tried to justify his late arrival, but he also questioned Bopanna and Mirza’s commitment for arriving early.

The selfies and videos from the veteran tennis star during the ceremony were intriguing to watch, but when he along with Bopanna took the court next day, what everyone feared unfolded. A tame first-round exit ended India’s hopes of a medal in the men’s doubles and the disappointment doubled when Sania Mirza and Prarthana Thombare also bowed out of the women’s doubles. To add insult into injury, Paes’ played the victim card once again after his exit rather than ruing the missed opportunity. He then termed his appearance as a celebration of his career - this disappointing and embarrassing first-round exit cannot be termed a celebration of anything.

Back in 2012, both Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna refused to partner Paes at London Olympics, and with Bopanna and Bhupathi sticking to their stand of going to the Olympics as a pair, the AITA decided to send two men’s doubles teams to Rio. To cajole Paes, who threatened to pull out of the Olympics, of losing out on Bopanna as partner, the AITA used Sania Mirza as a “bait” and paired up Paes with her in the mixed doubles. A disastrous Olympic campaign followed and with all the bad blood between them, neither pair managed to go beyond the pre-quarter-finals.

The story is likely to repeat once again, this time. Unless Bopanna and Mirza return with a medal from Rio, the headlines around Indian tennis will once again be around the Leander Paes saga. Many regarded Paes as a victim four years back, but our greatest Olympic hero, who travelled to Rio basking in the glory of a record seventh appearance, will surely return to India as the villain in this tragi-comic drama that has unfolded in Rio.