Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Paes teams up with Raja for Winston-Salem Open and US Open

Leander Paes has teamed up with fellow Mumbaikar Purav Raja, who is only the seventh Indian to have paired with the veteran legend on the Pro circuit, for the Winston-Salem Open and the US Open.

Raja formed a very successful pairing with the left-handed Divij Sharan but since they failed to defend 250 points at Los Cabos, where they won the title last year, they lost 15 places each in the ranking list.


With their combined rank of 137 (Sharan 68 and Raja 69) they anticipated that as a team they would not have entered the US Open, where the cut last year was around 130, and they decided to split.

Paes, ranked 59, has paired with Raja and Sharan with Germany's Andre Begemann, who is placed 66.

The deadline to send entry was August 18. However as it turned out, a lot of singles players chose not to play the doubles and the cut did not come out as strong as expected.

Eventually the cut was 155.

Sharan explained that split was the only sensible option under prevailing circumstances.

"Yes, we could have entered together but we would have known only last minute. If we could not get in together, then we would have struggled to find partner at the last minute because everyone would have fixed the team. Or maybe only one of us would have found a partner, so we had to take a call early," Sharan said

Paes said he is looking forward to a good partnership with Raja.

"I have seen Purav grow all these years. He has really come up well and I believe we can pull off something big together," Paes said about Raja who will be the 119th partner for him overall.

Wild cards Paes and Raja will open their campaign against Paolo Lorenzi and Franko Skugor in their first match together on Pro circuit at the Winston-Salem Open, beginning tomorrow.

They have played together in the past in the Davis Cup tie against Korea in 2013 in New Delhi when top singles players had boycotted the rubber due to a dispute with the AITA on playing conditions.

Among other Indians with whom Paes has played on the Pro circuit are Mahesh Bhupathi, Rohan Bopanna, Gaurav Natekar, Nitten Kirrtane, Mustafa Ghouse and Ramkumar Ramanathan.

In the Davis Cup, Paes teamed up with Bhupathi, Zeeshan Ali, Ramesh Krishnan, Vishal Uppal, Fazaluddin Syed, Sunil Kumar Sipaeya, Sanam Singh and Saketh Myneni.

Asked if it will be a long term association, Raja said, "We will take it week by week."

Talking about Begemann, Sharan said, "He's a really good doubles player. He was ranked pretty high at 36 at one point of time.

More For You

DDLJ director Aditya Chopra earns UK Stage Debut Awards nod for 'Come Fall in Love'

Aditya Chopra (right) with his father, Yash Chopra

YRF

DDLJ director Aditya Chopra earns UK Stage Debut Awards nod for 'Come Fall in Love'

BOLLYWOOD filmmaker Aditya Chopra was last Thursday (21) named among the nominees of the UK Stage Debut Awards for his Come Fall in LoveThe DDLJ Musical, performed at Manchester’s Opera House earlier this year.

Chopra delivered a blockbuster in 1995 with Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, popular as DDLJ, with Kajol and Shah Rukh Khan in the lead roles. It was adapted to a theatrical production and had its UK premiere in May.

Keep ReadingShow less
england-flags-reuters

A Union Jack flag and England's flag of St George hang from a pedestrain bridge as a man walks past, in Radcliffe, near Manchester, August 22, 2025. (Photo: Reuters)

Reuters

Union Jack and St George’s Cross at centre of migration tensions

Highlights:

  • Flags more visible across England amid migration debate
  • Protests outside hotels for asylum seekers linked to flag displays
  • Councils removing some flags citing safety concerns

THE RED and white St George's Cross and the Union Jack have been appearing across England in recent weeks. Supporters say the move is about national pride, while others see it as linked to rising anti-immigration sentiment.

Keep ReadingShow less
Lilly Singh reveals she’s been diagnosed with ovarian cysts
Lilly Singh reveals she’s been diagnosed with ovarian cysts
Getty Images

Lilly Singh joins Netflix’s Bollywood dance film 'Best of the Best'

NETFLIX has expanded its cast for Best of the Best, a coming-of-age film set around competitive Bollywood dancing, with comedian Lilly Singh joining in.

Hasan Minhaj and Prashanth Venkataramanujam have penned the story, about what happens when two childhood friends join the Bollywood dance team at their college. Minhaj will also act.

Keep ReadingShow less
Labour peer reignites Clive debate
A monument to Clive in The Square, Shrewsbury

Labour peer reignites Clive debate

THE current debate about whether the imperial statue of Robert Clive should be removed from outside the Foreign Office in London once again reinforces the need to include British colonial history in the school syllabus.

The older generation were brought up to believe that the British empire was, on the whole, a civilising force for good, but younger people today take a much more jaundiced view of the way in large parts of the world – especially India, “the jewel in the crown” – were plundered and drained of their wealth.

Keep ReadingShow less
Modi Vantara

Inaugurated last year by prime minister Narendra Modi, the sanctuary reportedly houses over 10,000 animals from 330 species, including tigers, elephants, Komodo dragons, and giant anteaters.

X/@narendramodi

India’s top court orders probe into Ambani family’s zoo project

INDIA’s Supreme Court has ordered an investigation into allegations of illegal animal imports and financial irregularities at Vantara, a private zoo run by Anant Ambani, son of Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani.

Vantara describes itself as the “world’s biggest wild animal rescue centre” and is located in Gujarat. According to India’s Central Zoo Authority, it houses more than 200 elephants, 50 bears, 160 tigers, 200 lions, 250 leopards and 900 crocodiles, along with other species.

Keep ReadingShow less