A young Paes defied the odds to win bronze in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, becoming India’s first individual Olympic medal winner in 44 years.
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It’s difficult to put into words what Leander Paes has accomplished in his stellar career. At his peak, the 48-year-old was regarded as a doubles specialist and arguably one of the best doubles players in the country and the world. His most memorable performance, however, came as a singles player in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. It was the watershed moment in Paes’ and Indian tennis history. The Kolkata-born player indelibly inscribed India’s name on the pages of Olympic history by winning the bronze medal at the 1996 Games. He thus became India’s first individual Olympic medal winner in 44 years. It was the moment the young 22-year-old attained legendary status and the sport of tennis grew with him.
Following wrestler KD Jadhav’s bronze medal win in Helsinki in 1952, it was Paes in 1996 who ended the lean streak by winning a medal in an individual discipline. Despite the fact that India has produced a large number of successful tennis players, particularly in the doubles and mixed doubles categories, India’s only Olympic medal in tennis came in 1996. His incredible come-from-behind victory over Fernando Meligeni of Brazil in the bronze medal match changed the face of the sport in a cricket-crazed country. Paes, who received the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award, India’s highest sporting honor, went on to win a slew of men’s doubles and mixed doubles Grand Slam titles, but that one individual medal at Olympics will always be the highlight of his incredible career.
It was not surprising to see Leander Paes become a tennis player because sport and the Olympics were in his blood. He was born to parents who were both successful athletes in their respective sports. His father, Vece Paes, was a member of the men’s hockey team that won a bronze medal at the Munich Olympics in 1972, and his mother, Jennifer Paes led India’s 1980 Asian Basketball Championship team.
Paes rose to fame as a 16-year-old doubles player in a Davis Cup encounter against Japan in early 1990, partnering Zeeshan Ali. Over the years, he became an integral part of the team’s success, scoring noteworthy victories in ties against France, Croatia and Switzerland.
At the age of 18, he had his first encounter with the Olympics in Barcelona in 1992. He was eliminated in the first round of the singles event, but he impressively went on to reach the quarterfinals of the men’s doubles tournament with partner Ramesh Krishnan. Still a teenager, Paes’ promising outing in Barcelona caught the eye of the country.
Paes, eager to take the next step at the Games, devised a specific strategy for Atlanta 1996. The tennis events were held at the Stone Mountain Tennis Center, a hard-court venue some 500m above sea level. He competed in tournaments at similar altitudes to prepare for Atlanta. Initially though it looked as if luck was not on the Indian’s side as he got an unfavourable draw.
The initial draw pitted Leander Paes, a wild card entry to the 1996 Olympics, against the then ATP world no. 1, Pete Sampras, in the first round. However, due to an injury, Sampras was forced to withdraw, leaving the Indian to meet another American – Richey Reneberg. After dropping the first set, he recovered to win the second before Reneberg was forced to withdraw due to an injury in the third, handing Paes his first victory at Olympics.
Buoyed by the victory, the Indian was at a different level in the following rounds. He went on to defeat Nicolas Pereira, Thomas Enqvist and Renzo Furlan in straight sets to set up a mouth-watering semi-final clash against a tennis legend – Andre Agassi, who was the eventual gold medallist in Atlanta. A spirited Paes huffed and puffed but the American was too good for the Indian player as he lost 6-7, 3-6.
The hard-fought defeat came at a cost as he ruptured a few tendons in his wrist ahead of the crucial bronze medal match against Fernando Meligeni of Brazil. The Indian had a slow start and it was evident in his display. Down a set and having to save a break-point, Paes produced a remarkable turnaround. He bagged the next two sets in a commanding fashion to win the match 3-6, 6-2, 6-4.
The moment of glory had arrived at last. India has finally won an Olympic medal in tennis. Paes had etched his name in Indian tennis history as the country’s first individual medallist since KD Jadhav won bronze in wrestling at the Helsinki Olympics in 1952. His Olympic glory served as a launching pad to greater success in tennis.
The likes of Mahesh Bhupathi, Sania Mirza, Rohan Bopanna and other players graced the tennis courts since. They have won numerous honours for their countries in global tournaments and Paes himself has partnered alongside few of them to win international accolades. But the promise land in tennis is yet to be reached 25 years after that historic achievement. With the Olympics in Tokyo just around the corner, this could very well be the Games in which Indian tennis stars write their names in the history books, as Paes did.
