I LOVE TAKING CHALLENGES, AS MY NAME LEANDER MEANS LION HEART

I have prepared for success and left nothing to chance. I worked hard, invented myself for the sport and reinvented myself to stay ahead of the curve. My confidence boosters are my preparation, my student like ability and my team who have backed me for the last three decades.

18

Grand Slam
Titles

46

Davis Cup
Wins

164

Doubles and Mixed
Doubles Partners

7

Olympic
Appearances

96

Grand Slam Participations in Main Draw

About Me //

Some Words About Me

MY LIFE STORY

There has always been a very strong sense of patriotism in me, to play for my country, and to put India on the world map. I have seen that drive in my parents and inherited the fervour with great respect.

It all started here

“If you don’t set your goals, how will you make records?”- Vece Paes

LION HEART

Sports came easy to me, being born to parents who were both renowned athletes.

My father, Vece Paes (former Olympic champion and sports medicine doctor) was a part of the bronze-winning Indian hockey team from the 1972 Olympic games at Munich. I was barely a teenager when I started training for tennis, and since then it had been a long-cherished dream of hanging my own Olympic medal next to his bronze. Today, as the two medals shine together, the feeling is surreal and of pride. My mother, Jennifer Paes, led the Indian basketball team to the Asian basketball championship in 1980.

Growing up, our house was packed with adrenaline, and once you have got a taste of that, there is just no looking back.

I was selected for the Britannia Amritraj Tennis Academy in 1986, and that changed my outlook towards professional tennis for good. Failures mustn’t slow you down, the hunger for goals should never die, and I suppose what set me apart in the residential academy that had the top 8 juniors of the country and Asia, was my ability to push beyond my 100%. Your early formative years define what you set out to achieve, and it was certainly my rock-solid foundation at BAT that helped me reach the world #1 ranking in junior tennis at the age of 17 after winning the junior Wimbledon title.

My precious winning moments

I prepared for success and left nothing to chance

LEANDER PEAS

My romance with tennis was never a by-product of the awards and recognitions I received.

It was something that I slept and woke up with ever since I was a little boy. But the awards were certainly a major boost to my confidence, and I am utterly grateful for them. It took a lot of focusing and refocusing, and constantly being at it to be worthy of these accolades. In the three decades that I have been playing professional tennis, I have seen the way the professional game has evolved, and it required constantly having to rediscover and realign myself. To me sport is a way of life and I used my journey as a vehicle to leave lasting impressions for generations to come.

Awards & Accolades

My coaches identified my biggest strengths- my agility, speed and threshold to keep pushing my body and mind

Despite not being naturally gifted in Tennis, I, with my systematic perseverance made it work in my favor. They helped me strengthen my will to win and excel at every game. They fueled the fire in me to break records for India and play relentlessly with passion. Some believed that I could play well into my 40s because of my attitude towards the game and my discipline.

At every step of my game, there have been coaches and trainers that made my game better

and more importantly, made me better at handling the game. Tennis can get unforgiving and lonely, especially when you have started out and seen success at such a young age. You need the right mentors to push you both mentally and physically, and I have surely been lucky with that.

Mind Over Matter

The challenges I am faced with, are not what make me mentally tough; it is how I choose to deal with them, that does.

My longevity in the game of tennis is due to my constantly being at it and persevering through thick and thin. It was a conscious decision to get up, dust myself and move on each time a game or decision did not work in my favor. And believe me, the wins are much sweeter this way too! Because nothing is permanent, I just have to savor the moment, learn my lessons, and move on.

I set higher goals for myself each time I achieve one, and never take my eyes off them. Not the same strategy will work for me each time, and hence the art of reinventing myself is an art I keep mastering.

Signing off

My motto in life is to infuse as much happiness in people’s lives as I can

LION HEART

One Last Roar

It has been a gratifying journey on the Tennis circuit, and I know that I have played my best tennis. This year 2020 was my year to bid farewell to the Tennis courts and my fans. One Last Roar was my way of saying Thank you to everyone who has been part of my beautiful journey. The Lionheart has played for 30 years for the glory of the Indian flag. In the Olympic Games at Tokyo that have been postponed to 2021, my participation would have been a record for India. Putting India on the world map is all that I ever set out to do and even after my last roar, that is what I shall continue to do through different faces and innovations.

18

46

164

7

96

Some Words About Me

MY LIFE STORY

It all started here

Sports came easy to me, being born to parents who were both renowned athletes.

Growing up, our house was packed with adrenaline, and once you have got a taste of that, there is just no looking back.

My precious winning moments

My romance with tennis was never a by-product of the awards and recognitions I received.

Nothing without my Team

My coaches identified my biggest strengths- my agility, speed and threshold to keep pushing my body and mind

At every step of my game, there have been coaches and trainers that made my game better

One for my partners

Mind Over Matter

Signing off

One Last Roar

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