2020 will mark Indian tennis legend Leander Paes’ last year in the pro-circuit matches.
Last Christmas, the veteran player announced that 2020 will be his ‘farewell year’ as a professional.
He wrote on his social media that he will be ‘playing select tournaments, travelling with my team, and celebrating with all my fans around the world.’
Paes, one of India’s most decorated tennis players, has won 18 Grand Slam double titles – eight in men’s doubles and 10 in mixed doubles.
The 46-year-old tennis legend sat down with SBS Radio on the sidelines of Australia Open 2020 in Melbourne to talk about his illustrious career, how his parents influenced his life and his post-retirement plans.
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“This will be my last year on tour and to get to play all the grand slams this year, will be fun,” Paes said.
“Before I took a flight out to Melbourne, there were a lot of emotions. There are a lot of people in my team, including my father, who doesn’t want me to stop.
“They know my body is strong, my legs are strong, they know the mind is still happy. There are a few people in my team who want me to continue.
“But I think there comes a point where I have done so much already in Tennis, you think how many grand slams you have played, are there more world records to achieve, you find that now I am breaking my own records,” he said.
Paes became the only second man after Rod Laver to win a Grand Slam in three different decades when he lifted the 2010 doubles trophy in 2010.
He is also the only Indian to win a tennis medal till date – at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.
He also holds the record of winning the most Davis Cup doubles title and is the recipient of India’s illustrious sports awards like the Khel Ratna, Arjuna Award, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri awards.
“It has been a very blessed career. It has been a very blessed profession for me. There are so many other things that are left to do so now.”
The star who started his career in the early 90s as a tennis player says his parents have greatly influenced him and his career.
“My mother captained the basketball team in the Asian Games and World Championships. My father won the bronze medal in field hockey in the 1972 Olympics. I wanted to play for my country. The only dream that I ever had was to win an Olympic medal for India.
When asked about his post-retirement plans, the tennis star says he hopes to work for children.
“My passion and my dream as a 47-year-old is to use my brand to create opportunities for kids all over the world. In India, we have 745 million children under the age of 25. To be able to give an opportunity to them to become beautiful journalists, to become beautiful athletes, to become astronauts, to become scientists and champions in their own way,” he says.
On Tuesday, Paes with his Latvian mixed doubles partner Jelena Ostapenko will face American Bethanie MAttek-Sands and Briton Jamie Murray at the 2020 Australian Open.
On Sunday, Paes and Ostapenko made a winning start by defeating Australian duo, Storm Sanders and Marc Polmans.
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(With inputs from Dario Castaldo)
