Rohan Bopanna will partner Leander Paes and Sania Mirza at the Rio Olympics, says AITA
Prarthana Thombare will team up with Mirza in the women's doubles category.
The All India Tennis Association on Saturday announced that Leander Paes (pictured above) and Rohan Bopanna will represent India in the men's doubles category at the upcoming Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. Sania Mirza will partner Rohan Bopanna in the mixed doubles category and Prarthana Thombare in the women's doubles.
Bopanna, as India's highest ranked men's doubles player, had picked Saketh Myneni as his partner, but the AITA overruled his decision and decided on Paes instead. "Rohan Bopanna respects Paes, he has given us his reasons why he would prefer Saket Myneni," said Anil Khanna, president of the AITA.
Leander Paes won his 18th Grand Slam earlier this month, when he took the French Open mixed doubles title with Martina Hingis. He won a bronze medal in the singles category at the 1996 Olympics. Mirza, along with her regular partner Hingis, is the World No 1 women's doubles player.