Paes regrets playing with Bhupathi

Leander Paes says playing doubles with Mahesh Bhupathi was one of the worst decisions of his career. India's Davis Cup captain said he sacrificed his singles career by opting to team with Bhupathi in the late nineties.

Speaking to www.espnstar.com, Paes, who will pair with Bhupathi for the doubles in the ongoing Davis Cup Asia-Oceania match versus Japan on Saturday, said, "When I was at the top of my singles career, I actually sacrificed my rankings to play Satellites and Future tournaments with him [Bhupathi] so that he could be at par with me… which would help us get entry into ATP tournaments. Even though everyone advised me not to pick up a rookie player like Mahesh, my instincts told me to take him along."

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Paes, who won an individual bronze medal at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996 and lost the bronze medal match with Bhupathi narrowly to the Croatian duo of Mario Ancic and Ivan Ljubicic at 2004 Athens, added: "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."

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The former world No 1 pair is due to represent India in the doubles event at the Beijing Olympics in August.

Talking about reuniting for the Games, Paes said: "Playing with Mahesh again will surely bring back pleasant memories and India will stand a good chance to win a medal."