Tennis star Leander Paes has announced his retirement stating that 2020 will be his farewell year. Paes has announced that he would look to play a “few select tournaments” next year and travel with his team as he calls curtains on a career that started in 1991.
Leander father Vece Paes said, “The Davis Cup is in March. Then there is the Olympics in Tokyo. He wants to represent the country in those two events and give his all. He can then call it a day after playing tennis for 35 years. Paes has won 18 doubles and mixed doubles Grand Slam titles and a bronze medal in the singles at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. He also competed in consecutive Olympics from 1992 to 2016, becoming the first Indian and only tennis player to compete at seven Games.
“He has been thinking about it for four-five months. He is 46 now. Age is catching up,” said Olympian Vece Paes. “He wants to spend more time with his daughter (Aiyana). So he announced that 2020 will be his last,” he added. Paes won a total of 54 doubles titles in a career spanning three decades. He is also the most successful doubles player in the history of Davis Cup with 43 wins from 56 matches.
