'Paes can be very intimidating to play against'

By Dhananjay Khadilkar Paris: American Lisa Raymond is a doubles legend on the WTA Tour with 74 career titles. Currently ranked No. 2 in the individual doubles rankings, the 38-year old, who partnered our very own Leander Paes to win the Wimbledon mixed doubles crown, tells Firstpost that the Indian has some of the best hands ever on the doubles court. Excerpts from an interview What do you think about your form in the Open GDF Suez tournament so far? We are feeling good. It’s our first tournament since Australia. We love playing indoors. So far, we have got two solid matches under our belt. [caption id=“attachment_210357” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“Leander Paes and Lisa Raymond with their runners-up trophy at the 2001 US Open. Carol Newsom/AFP”]  [/caption] You are something of a doubles legend on the women’s tour. What keeps you going at the age of 38? I feel I can still achieve much more. Over the past couple of years, I have got myself in good shape again. I feel we can still win Grand Slams. Our goal is to be the No. 1 doubles team in the world. We are on the right path right now. That’s a lot of motivation! I don’t think age is a factor. Hopefully, I stay healthy. I have been very lucky with injuries throughout my career. I work hard on and off the court, try to stay fit and healthy. As long as I feel I can win at this high level, I am going to be out here playing. You won a Wimbledon title with Leander Paes, who has now become the first Indian to complete a career Grand Slam in doubles after his win in Australia. What do you think about Leander as a player and doubles partner? He is phenomenal. He has some of the best hands ever on the doubles court. He plays with such flair. He is a personality on and off the court. The fact that he is doing this and winning Grand Slams at his age is unbelievable. It shows you that he is a hard worker. He has kept himself in shape. He has had a phenomenal career. People forget what a good singles player he was too years ago. What does Leander bring to the team? He is super positive. When I played with Leander, everything was positive. He is experienced and very knowledgeable. He kind of gets in your face and can be very intimidating to play against. So that’s why you want him on your side. You partnered Rohan Bopanna at the Australian Open. How is he as a doubles player? Why do you think Indian players excel in doubles? Bopanna is a great player. I love playing with him. I think we are going to play the French Open together. He is a super nice guy. (About the second part), a lot has to do with the fact that they push each other. You have Bhupathi, Leander and now, Bopanna. They have had their fair share of success in doubles. Bopanna is up and coming among the threesome. They push each other and see what each other can achieve. They all kind of want a piece of the pie. Is an Olympics medal on your agenda? It’s definitely there. There are lot of us whose goal is to be a part of the Olympics team and to bring home a medal for our country. If there’s one thing that I haven’t achieved in my career, that’s a medal. That’s a huge goal for me.