Brothers-in-arms seek greener pastures

Indeed, a place in the final at Wimbledon for the first time in three attempts also proved that more than their adaptability to different surfaces, it was the sense of occasion that has got them thus far. They may or may not win the Championships but they would have picked up enough positive points in their continuing effort tomake the partnership as viable as possible.

“We didn’t come here with any expectations,” Paes said. “That’s because we have not been doing well here (at Wimbledon) in the last few years. But the win at Paris has helped our confidence a lot. We have the belief now to be in control of tight situations,” the world number one doubles player said.

That said, it was indeed heartening to watch how their partnership had turned the corner after the most tumultuous time both could have been through ever. The fire of old is returning but is taking its time. That is okay considering that, at one point of time, it could have been curtains for the most successful Indian pair in history.

That’s old hat now, hopefully, because the crisis has helped them to grow up to a level that matters could take care of themselves. The hallmark of their success has been the ability to blend two entirely different personalities which reflected so well in the kind of tennis they played.

“Now we share a very professionalrelationship with the result that our tennis has become efficient and both of us know exactly what is to be done,” Paes says. That is what one would call improvement by leaps and bounds, because in April last, the talk was centred around the unfathomable low they had hit.

Going strictly by their matches here, there was nothing exceptional in the manner in which they outplayed opponents. They were playing solid, as both Paes and Bhupathi agree. That was something which had to be done particularly when they are not on their favourite surface. Being top-seeds and the world’s number one pair as well also gives them the confidence to turn a match around when it seems that things are not going according to their liking.

The essence of any successful doubles team is their ability to pull together when the chips are down, when they are not winning as they would want to. The real characters of the two personalities come to the fore then. If tributes should be paid to the strong characters that Paes and Bhupathipossess it is now, for they have tried, rather successfully, to get back to the level from where they unfortunately tumbled, and badly at that.What if Paes no longer says that “Hesh is like a brother to me” (at least he hasn’t be heard saying that in a long time). The fact is that when Paes and Bhupathi join together, they play good tennis. Not for nothing are they world number one. If they can become two great professionals, everybody benefits.