Indian tennis’ ageless wonder Leander Paes on Saturday became the most successful doubles player in the history of the Davis Cup as he combined with Rohan Bopanna to not only grab a record 43rd win but also bring the country back in the tie against China on Saturday.

The 44-year-old Paes, making his comeback to the squad, and Bopanna downed a fighting Chinese pair of Mo Xin Gong and Ze Zhang 5-7 7-6(5) 7-6(3) in the do-or-die doubles rubber of the Asia/Oceania Group I tie.

Paes also became the sixth player in ATP World Tour history (since 1973) to record 750 doubles match wins (750-433).

Spanning his long career, Paes has partnered with nearly 120 different players. At age of 16, Paes had made his Davis Cup debut in 1990 alongside Zeeshan Ali, who is now the coach of the squad, and grew into a legend in company of Mahesh Bhupathi, who is now the non-playing captain.

“Lee is just a one-of-a-kind type of guy,” Mark Knowles, former Australian doubles specialist-turned-coach told ATPWorldTour.com. “He has a unique ability to empower his partners and make them reach heights that maybe they didn’t believe they could attain.”

Paes, India’s Davis Cup hero for years, was tied on 42 wins with Italian great Nicola Pietrangeli for long but finally surpassed him, albeit, in a foreign land.

In his illustrious career, Paes weaved the longest unbeaten winning streak of 24 matches in Davis Cup with Bhupathi, with whom he ruled the ATP circuit in late 90s.

The record-breaking win was a long time coming as Paes was kept out of the Davis Cup team in the last year due to differences with Bhupathi over selection and his form. But brought back to the squad, Paes delivered at the Davis Cup stage once again.

The tributes poured in for the veteran star.