Would be fun to play doubles with Roger Federer: Leander Paes
Roger Federer is widely considered to be one of the greatest tennis players of all time, if not the greatest. With his legendary skills, staggering achievements and picture-perfect public image, he has become a sort of flag-bearer for the sport.
As such, it is common to see players on the tour expressing their desire of sharing the court with him. And while many have had the fortune of doing so while being on the other side of the net, few can boast of being on the same side as Roger Federer.
Even legendary doubles player Leander Paes, who has over 1200 doubles matches to his name, has never played alongside Federer. And the India wants to correct that.
In a recent Q&A session on Twitter, Leander Paes took on several questions from his fans - one of which asked if there would ever be a Paes-Federer doubles match. The 47-year-old, who had previously disclosed that he would only be answering his favorite questions, chose to reply to this one - much to the delight of all Federer and Paes fans.
Leander Paes on his Roger Federer wish
Leander Paes and Roger Federer have faced each other a few times in their career, but on each of those occasions, the Swiss was standing on the other side of the net.
The first time the duo faced each other in a singles match was in the second qualifying round of the 2000 Indian Wells Masters - where the Atlanta bronze medalist won 5-7 6-1 6-4. In doing so, Leander Paes became the first Indian to defeat the great Roger Federer.
The duo have faced each other multiple times since, but only in doubles. Two of those encounters were at the Olympics (2004, 2008), which were split equally between Leander Paes and Roger Federer (and their respective partners).
But unfortunately, despite having played well over 3000 tour matches in total, the celebrated duo have never had the chance to play alongside one another.
This prompted a fan on Twitter to ask Leander Paes if there was any possibility of him partnering the Swiss in the future. The 18-time Grand Slam champion replied that it indeed would be ‘fun’ to play alongside Roger Federer.
“I have played against Roger a few times in singles and doubles. Would be fun to play with him on the same side of the net,” Paes said.
The two greats did come close to playing together during the 2015 season of the International Premier Tennis League; that was the only season in which Paes took part. But as fate would have it, Roger Federer and Leander Paes were drafted by different teams.
It remains to be seen if at all the legendary duo, with 38 Grand Slams between them, will come together in the future for a doubles match.