Variety Entertainment

AITA conflict has again started to show its head due to recent comments by Leander Paes on Mahesh Bhupathi. Mahesh Bhupathi has already asked AITA to ask Paes to step down from the post of captain. Now Peas said that the decision to play doubles with Mahesh Bhupathi was the worst decision he made in his career. He also said that he sacrificed his singles career by opting to play doubles with Mahesh Bhupathi in the late 1990s. This is wht he exactly told in an interview

“When I was at the top of my singles career, I actually sacrificed my rankings to play Satellites and Future tournaments with him so that he could be at par with me which would help us get entry into ATP tournaments. Though everyone advised me not to pick up a rookie player like Mahesh, my instincts told me to take him along. Now, when I look back, I regret the fact that I sacrificed my singles career for him. I had won the Pilot Pen International tournament beating the top players of the world, including Pete Sampras and reached a world ranking of 73 in 1998. Going by my performance then, I should have focused on singles. Opting to play doubles with Mahesh was probably the worst decision of my playing career.”

This statement will surely create some problem in AITA again. All this started after winning gold in DOHA Asian games 2006 Bhupathi came out and said that he would never play with Paes any more. But Paes is likely to team up with Mahesh to represent India in the doubles event of the Beijing Olympics in August.