2. Leander Paes
India had always trod on unsuccessful paths as far as Olympic tennis.
The one man who lit up the tennis world by carrying home a bronze medal in the Atlanta Olympics of 1996 was Leander Paes. Paes is a marvel to look at. At 43 years of age, this fellow has been in a tremendous form, winning four of the six Grand Slam titles finals he qualified for, since 2015.
Having won 8 doubles and 10 mixed doubles Grand Slam titles, Paes can never be written off. The 43-year-old will be playing his 7th straight Olympic this year. Him and Bopanna are not on the finest terms of friendship and it will indeed be very interesting to see how their chemistry pans out on court.
Myneni was eventually overruled as an option by the AITA and Paes, a one of a kind experienced athlete has bombarded on the Olympic scene for the 7th time. Paes, on the other hand, maintains that he and Bopanna are India's best chance of an Olympic medal.
He assured fans, saying, "We are playing at a very high level. My career speaks for itself and Rohan has also been doing well in last 18 months. We both are ready and without a shadow of doubt, me and Rohan are the best team.”
