23 Jun 2012

India to send two men's doubles teams to Olympics

12:57 pm on 23 June 2012

The All India Tennis Association has decided to send two men's doubles teams to compete in the 2012 Olympics, ending a stalemate between two of their star players.

Leander Paes would pair with Vishnu Vardhan while Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna would make the second team.

The decision follows a public row among the players over their partnerships.

Both Bhupathi and Bopanna had refused to play with Paes who, in turn, said he would not play at all if Bhupathi and Bopanna were sent as a team.

Leander Paes will also partner India's top female player Sania Mirza in the mixed doubles.

Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi won three grand slam titles at the pinnacle of their partnership in the late 1990s and early 2000s.