Leander Paes Accuses 'Jealous Competitors' of Tarnishing His Reputation

September 20, 2016

New Delhi, Sep 20: Leander Paes' monumental achievements notwithstanding, controversies keep chasing him but the marathon man of Indian tennis says they are nothing more than false propaganda initiated by a few of his "highly jealous" competitors.

leander

Paes did not take any names but said the negativity that is being built around his name in recent times, is a result of a few underachievers' sinister design.

Whenever it comes to playing for nation in the Indian team at the big stage, be it Olympics, Asian Games or in Davis Cup, tennis has found itself mired in controversies.

He said he does not care what people say or think about him since he's busy writing his name in the history books, that no one can change.

"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. Instead of working hard, they want to knock me down," Paes told PTI in an interview during the just-concluded Davis Cup tie against Spain.

"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."

Is he tired of this negativity? Does he get frustrated? "I am a human being. But I don't deal with it now," he said in a nonchalant way.

"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.

"Few people are always trying to tarnish my reputation. There are some competitors out there, who are highly jealous of what I have achieved. Instead of working hard, to achieve it themselves, they realise, they can't to that quantum, so hence, let's ruin his reputation. One person will put one story here, one there and build perception," he said with disgust.

'Don't worry about haters'

Paes said he does not care about these people, who "bark" about him, and will continue to do what he does best -- excel on tennis courts.

"Not to worry about haters. You play your game, you run in your lane, don't enter into others' lane. I will write my name in the history books. That is fruit of your hard work.

"People believe it or not, media write or not, but the intelligent people, the knowledgeable people will see history books and I have written my name there many times and will write many more times. That can't change, you can't forge a history book and you can't change history books."

"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."

Personal life

It's not just because of his frosty relationship with fellow Indian players but he has been in news for problems in his personal life too. His personal life is talked about as much as his success as tennis player.

He recently was involved in a litigation for his daughter's custody and his affairs and break-ups have also been discussed in public.

Asked why he could not be as successful in his personal relationships as he is in his professional life, Paes countered the question.

"I have been very successful in personal life but there have been a few people who were a bit greedy. Being gentle is a premium. Sometimes you have to be tough, especially in India. When you get to a position, people want to take advantage of gentleness. I am learning that in life you have to be tough with people. My conscience is clear."

Paes, who is India's most successful tennis player with 18 Grand Slam titles and an Olympic bronze medal, is routinely asked why is he still continuing playing tennis at the age of 43. Why he does not let the younger generation come in and play for the nation, why is he not stepping aside?

'Not playing for money'

A few believe, he is playing for money since this is the only way he can earn his livelihood as he does not have a second career option like many of his compatriots.

Ask him about this perception, and he explains his side of the story.

"I actually lose money playing men's doubles and mixed doubles. The cost of travel with my coaches, every year when I sign up in January, I know I am going to be spending 250,000 to 300,000 dollars a year. I am spending over Rs 3 crore a year. We don't have any organisation that pays for us and there is no guaranteed salary.

"At the end of the month, you have a certain money in your pocket even if you had an ankle sprain or you were unwell. But there is no guarantee I will get back my money. The disparity in singles and doubles prize money is huge. And in doubles you share the prize money.

"If I stop playing and stay in India and start doing commentary, motivational speaking and start my academy which I will start when I am finished, it is much more lucrative for me. I do fashion clothing, own a clothing company in the last two years. So If I stop playing tennis, One -- I take away that Rs 3 crore expense, plus I am at home. It's much more lucrative. I am not even breaking even now. If I win, 2-3 Grand Slams, then only I make money. I am playing because I love to play."

"No matter what people say, I have earned the right to play my tennis."

Remind him that he had poor results on the circuit in the last two year in men's doubles and his ranking has slipped further, he said," No one can point a finger at me. I have achieved everything. Next year you watch (how the rankings improve)."

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News Network
January 8,2020

Indore, Jan 8:  India skipper Virat Kohli has added yet another feather to his cap by becoming the fastest player to score 1,000 runs in T20I cricket as a captain. Kohli played an unbeaten knock of 30 during India''s seven-wicket win over Sri Lanka in the second T20I of the ongoing three-match series on Tuesday evening.

Kohli achieved the milestone of scoring 1,000 runs as captain in his 30th T20I inning. He is the second Indian and sixth overall after MS Dhoni to have achieved the feat. Dhoni had scored 1112 runs in 62 T20I games as captain.

Faf du Plessis (1273 runs from 40 games), Kane Williamson (1083 runs in 39 games), Eoin Morgan (1013 runs in 43 games) and Ireland''s William Porterfield (1002 runs in 56 games) are other captains on the list.

During India''s emphatic victory at the Holkar Stadium, Kohli also surpassed team-mate Rohit Sharma, who has been rested for the series, as the top run-getter in the T20Is. Kohli now has 2663 runs from 71 innings.

Both had finished 2019 as joint top-scorers in T20Is, with 2633 runs each.

India, already with an unassailable lead of 1-0 in the series, will now face Sri Lanka in the final T20I on Friday in Pune. The first match between the two teams was called off without a ball being bowled due to wet patches on the pitch in Guwahati last Sunday.

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Agencies
February 13,2020

New Delhi, Feb 13: Sanjiv Chawla, a key accused in the match-fixing scandal involving former South African cricket team captain Hansie Cronje in 2000, was extradited from the UK on Thursday, Delhi Police said.

The 50-year-old British national, accompanied by a crime branch team from London, reached IGI Airport this morning, a senior officer said.

He is likely to be taken to the crime branch office for questioning, he added.

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News Network
May 15,2020

New Delhi, May 15: Former England skipper David Gower feels Sourav Ganguly has the right "political skills" to lead the ICC one day and he has already displayed that as BCCI president, which is a "far tougher job".

The elegant left-hander is very impressed with Ganguly's leadership abilities and believes that he has what it takes to head the global body in the future.

"One thing I have learnt over the years is that if you are going to run BCCI, you need to be many, many things. Having a reputation like he (Ganguly) has is a very good start, but you need to be a very deft politician.

"You need to have control of a million different things," Gower said ahead of "Q20", a unique chat show for the fans presented by 'GloFans'.

Gower reckons being president of the BCCI is the toughest job imaginable in world cricket.

"And of course, you need to be responsible for a game that is followed by, I mean, should we say a billion people here in India," he said.

"We all know about the immense following for cricket in India. So it is indeed a wonderful thing to behold. Sourav has the toughest task imaginable in charge of BCCI, but so far I would say the signs are very good.

"He has listened, given his own opinion and has pulled strings gently," he said.

Political skills are a must in administration and that's where Gower finds his fellow left-hander ticking all the boxes.

"He is a very, very good man and has those political skills. He has the right attitude and can keep things together and will do good job. And if you do a good job as BCCI chief in the future, who knows?

"But I would actually say the more important job, to be honest, is running BCCI. Being head of ICC is an honour, there is a lot that can be done by ICC, but actually look at the rankings, look at where the power is heading up. BCCI is definitely the bigger job," he said.

On the cricketing front, Gower believes World Test Championship has given the format much-needed context.

"The idea of this World Test Championship has come about for one very simple reason that people are worried about the survival of Tests. Back in the seventies, eighties, I don't think we needed context to be fair.

"Test cricket was very much more obviously the most important format and if there was anything to be judged by, it was the performances in Test matches both as an individual and as a team.

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