It’s surreal. We’re sitting in the business lounge of a 5-star hotel at 2 a.m., and to the accompaniment of the genteel tinkle of cutlery being laid out for the breakfast buffet by well-trained staff, talking about happiness.
Let me rephrase that. It’s surreal to me. This environment. Leander Paes, on the other hand, is at home, at ease, radiating charm and good cheer.
We’d been juggling schedules for a few days, before discovering, with some relief, that we’re both owls. And so, after a day that started with dropping his daughter off at school at a lark-like 7.30 a.m., and a choc-a -block calendar that ended with a formal dinner, he glides into the coffee shop where we’ve been waiting. It’s nigh-on 1 a.m., but he’s fresh, glowing, relaxed, and looking like he could go five sets right here, right now.
While Dinesh and I finish our coffee, he gets one sent out to his driver, who, he points out, has had an even longer day. And then we move on down the road, to his favourite haunt, where they all know his name. He greets the scattered staff you see in 5-star night-times, asks how they are. And then, finally, we sink into deep couches, and he turns the full focus of his attention back to us.
We talk about his Olympian parents, both of whom played for India, his dad in a medal-winning hockey team, his mum in basketball.
“I’ve had the most amazing relationship with my parents. My dad is my best friend. I learnt later that he’d decided that his first son was going to be a super-athlete. When I was in my crib he had me doing crunches! He actually had on top of me different coloured balls so I could differentiate between left brain and right brain—he already had a scientific methodology about guiding me into this path. One of his greatest gifts was that he was always on the pulse of when to let up, give me breathing space and when to push hard because I could take more.
“Football is, was and will always be my first love. My lifelong dream has been to walk out of an underground locker-room into a World Cup final, confetti everywhere, and a hundred-thousand people chanting, Lionheart! When I was 12, I got a scholarship to PSV Eindhoven. They asked me to give up my Indian passport; I said no, I’m Indian through and through.
“When I gave up my soccer dream, my dad said, now what are you going to do? I said, tennis? And he chuckled. He said you don’t even know how to play tennis properly! I said, find me the best tennis academy and in a year I’ll tell you whether I can do this or not. He took me down to Chennai [to the Britannia Amritraj Tennis Academy], stayed with me for two days, settled me into my room.
“And he wrote me a 100-page letter saying how mum and he were moving on their own paths and how they continue to care for each other and love us kids more than anything in the world. ‘But now, son, you’re a young man and you need to stand on your own two feet and this is your path.’ I read some of the letter while he was there and never once questioned him because I had tremendous belief in my family. And then I embarked upon becoming a man and tennis was my vehicle. I was 12.
“I have amazing parents who have belief in my talents, who have taught me as a young boy how to be a student of life. And then I’ve had amazing coaches and teachers who’ve taught me to be a student of athleticism, of tennis. Now I’m a student of parenting; my daughter teaches me. To me, the journey of Leander has always been of a man who continues to learn.”
And the pressures of the pro circuit for over 20 years, of stardom?
“It’s a lonely life. I think the baggage of celebrity is very tough, very hard. But, I’m very aware of what I do to people when I’m in a room, on the phone, talking one-on-one. I’m very aware, when I’m in a stadium, of the frenzy fans can have. But to me, myself? I’ve never been a star. I’ve just been Leander, that same student. The celebrity is there — not the person: I’m talking about the emotions other people feel — you can see it, use it as a potent vehicle to move people and motivate them.
“Ever since I was a boy I’ve had people say, no, you can’t: ‘You have a mitral valve problem; no you can’t.’ ‘You’re too short; you can’t.’ ‘You don’t possess a backhand; you can’t.’ ‘You don’t have money to travel; no.’ ‘Indians? World-beaters? Not gonna happen.’ The one thing they never ever made the mistake of telling me was that I don’t have the killer instinct or passion to be what I want to be.”
There have been other tough times. “The first hour my dad gave me that letter to read. Sleeping in a locker room all night. The first hour Hesh and I had differences. It’s always been that first hour; it’s a little confusing; just understanding what cards you’ve been dealt. It’s the interpretation of the obstacle, understanding it, then finding a solution. An instrument plays better when it is weathered. God knows, my soul, body and heart have been weathered quite a bit.”
(This story appears in the 20 January, 2012 issue of Forbes India. To visit our Archives, click here.)
This guy is a GEM , i studied with him in school in Madras Christian higher secondary school , where he was in the tennis academy. I was in section F and he was in section C. We played football together, as he has mentioned , he plays really well. Very kind and loving guy. I think when we were in 8th Standard he won the junior Wimbledon. Even after that he was humble as he was before. So well dressed and i can still remember his sweet smile. After school as i had to walk my way back i used stay back sit in the stone bench and watch him practice. There was another guy called Ponnapa who used to play with him, if i can remember his name it correctly. He had strong legs and would run and practice like a machine. The best part i could remember between me and him was ,once i got into a fight with a boy and we hurt each other he was the one who took to the medical room. He used to hang out with a northeast boy mostly who was also a hosteler and a good football player. Even though by built he was bigger compare to us thin school boys , his body language and respect towards the teachers was respectful and he never took advantage of what he was then. I have always kept a tap on him through the media i know he did go through rough patch both in personal life and in tennis. One thing i was always sure about him was that he can never fake it. Even if he is wrong he wont fake it and he would be as he is. What touched me much after reading this article was about the letter his dad gave him about their separation in school days . This happened during our times as we were school boys. I wonder what would have gone through that kids mind and in spite of that huge pain or even confusion to understand the complexity of relationship , he still managed to put up a smile and work hard in tennis. One the reason he such awesome dad is the reflection of what kid then and a good human being he is. I pray God blesses him and his loved ones and take him to greater heights as He has Planned for him. For me i am glad this tiny boy then managed to play football with him and could sit in a stone bench and watch him play gracefully.
on Sep 15, 2012There should never be any talk about surgical excision of the parasitic cysts embedded in the brain. There are effective parasititocides. Which should be the first line of defence. To even discuss surgery shows the mediocrity of the medical decision. Not American standard by any measure. The only surgery, if ever, is when any scarectomy for intractable scar generated seizures. Yes I ' m an American Neurologist that have always saved patients from scalpel happy neurosurgeons if they happen to be so inclined.
on Jul 10, 2012Perhaps Leander was not told by his Dr Dad that I had asked his father to rule out cysticercosis when his father told told me that he \" had a space occupying lesion \" . Yes I \' m an American Neurologist that have treated dozens of such cases here in the US . So please do not spread disinformation about the limited knowledge of American doctors about cysticercosis . As a matter of fact I had a Goan patient that had come to me for treatment (from India) for poorly controlled seizures that I diagnosed and treated
on Jul 9, 2012A very elegant interview that carries a lot of honesty and faith. Kudos to Leander for defining Indian Tennis post the success of Ramanathan Krishnan and the Amritraj Brothers as also Ramesh Krishnan. He and Hesh simply managed to write a whole new book in Indian Tennis that is hard for anyone else to emulate or rival.
on Jan 28, 2012