Tennis legend Leander Paes a good batsman and bowler too!

This may surprise you.

If you thought Leander Paes only excels in tennis, you are wrong. He is also a good cricketer.

On Tuesday, India's tennis legend displayed another facet of his talents while turning out for the Sports Journalists' Association of Mumbai (SJAM), against The Sports Gurukul, in an exhibition Twenty20 match at the Ajmera ILand Sports Academy cricket ground in Wadala, Mumbai.

The 40-year-old confirmed his versatility with a superb all-round show that had the players off both sides applauding in awe.

He took three wickets and then returned to the middle to score a fluent 42, hitting four fours and a six, but SJAM went down by five runs.

After all, he was the captain of his school cricket team when he studied at the La Martiniere, in Kolkata.

Paes, who won the men’s singles bronze medal at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and has 14 Grand Slams titles to his name, is also good at hockey and football, which he plays in his spare time.

Earlier this year, he also acted in a movie, playing the lead role in Rajdhani Express, which, however, failed to make an impact.

With the Tour season over Paes, who won the US Open this year, partnering Radek Stepanek of the Czech Republic, is in Mumbai and will participate in a season-ending Indian Tennis Players Association fundraising initiative, the ITPA Doubles Masters on December 21 and 22.

The two-day gala, to be hosted by the Khar Gymkhana in Mumbai, will also feature Mahesh Bhupathi, Rohan Bopanna, Somdev Devvarman, Yuki Bhambri and Divij Sharan.