It looks like the bitterness that had crept in Indian tennis was over the moment Leander Paes and Sania Mirza took to the courts on Wednesday for a practice session in London.
As the Times of India reports, both players opted for a two-hour session with Sania playing from the forehand court, taking advantage of her strong returns.
Paes was working on his backhand and the proceedings seemed to suggest that the past was now ‘water under the bridge’.
In this file photo, Leander Paes and Sania Mirza are seen playing together at the Commonwealth Games. AP
After the practice session, Sania was quoted by the TOI report as saying: “It helps me a great deal to play from the forehand side because returning is my strength and I will be able to give Leander maximum support.”
It may be recalled that Paes won Wimbledon with Lisa Raymond playing from the backhand side.
Paes, meanwhile, was quoted in Hindustan Times as saying that he felt disrespected. “Am I feeling disrespected? Yes. Do I feel like it’s (the selection) is not on merit? Yes. Is it hard? Yes. But then we are professionals and have to put all the negatives aside and play for the cause I have been playing all my life and that’s playing for the flag and for the millions of Indians,” he told HT.
Read the full Times of India report here.
