Legend, rookie chorus: It Paes to be with Leander

‘‘It’s magic. It’s already a dream come true. In the final, we’ll just be playing for the cherries on top’’, said a teary-eyed Paes, who was sidelined for five months with a non-malignant brain lesion.

‘‘I’m pretty much trying to put it all behind me. To be here was a long shot (a few) months ago, so being in the final is just phenomenal. We are playing like two kids in a candy store.’’

Wearing a baggy, long-sleeve shirt to hide the extra kilos he gained during his enforced layoff, the 30-year-old from Kolkata emphatically closed out with an ace to take the fourth seeds into Sunday’s final against Nenad Zimonjic and Elena Bovina.

The on-court chemistry between the two seemed to be the basis of a firm friendship off the court too. At the post-match courtside TV interview, the two bantered and joked as the crowd cheered.

Martina, though, indicated that this would be her last year on the tour. ‘‘I always like come to here because the Aussies are a great sport nuts. But this will be the last one for me.’’

Paes, asked if he could change her mind, said: ‘‘You’re putting pressure on me. I am there as long as she’s there — two years, three years or five years. Martina’s a fine human being — whenever she want to play, I’ll be there for her.’’

He then spoke of his illness and how he came through it. ‘‘Six months ago I couldn’t have thought of making a comeback. It’s a real magic and a dream come true. Martina stood by me for six-long months. It’s an honour for me.’’

Paes was rushed to an Orlando hospital last August after complaining of severe headaches and his condition was initially suspected to be cancer. However, he was diagnosed with a parasitic infection of the brain, which was treatable with drugs. Paes revealed it took a lecture from his father to convince him to play again. ‘‘I had very little motivation to come back when I looked in the mirror and saw all the (extra) weight’’, said Paes, whose goal for 2004 is to play in his fourth Olympics in Athens.

‘‘But my father said I’d promised I would play in four Olympics, so I had no choice. The six months out gave me a breather and now I’m as hungry as ever.’’

His father, Vece, won a bronze in hockey at the Munich Olympics in 1972, while his mother Jennifer played basketball.

‘‘Soccer was my love but I came from a family that represented India at the Olympics. I was actually conceived at the 1972 Olympics in Munich during the troubles with the Palestinians,” said Paes. ‘‘Everything was shut down for four days. No newspapers, no radio, no TV…and the athletes weren’t allowed outside their rooms, so I guess there was me.’’

-Reuters