Leander Paes Height, Age, Girlfriend, Wife, Family, Biography & More

Bio/Wiki
Full name	Leander Adrian Paes [1]The Times of India
Profession	Tennis Player
Physical Stats & More
Height (approx.)	in centimeters- 178 cm in meters- 1.78 m in feet & inches- 5’ 10”
Weight (approx.)	in kilograms- 70 kg in pounds- 154 lbs
Eye Colour	Black
Hair Colour	Black
Tennis
Turned pro	1991
Plays	Right-handed (one-handed backhand)
Coach	Dave O'Meara
Career Titles (Singles)	1
Career Titles (Doubles)	54
Career Titles (Mixed Doubles)	10
Highest Ranking (Singles)	No. 73 (24 August 1998)
Highest Ranking (Doubles)	No. 1 (21 June 1999)
Political Career
Political Party	All India Trinamool Congress (2021-present) Note: On 29 October 2021, he joined the Trinamool Congress in presence of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in Panaji.
Awards	• Arjuna Award (1990) • Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award (1996) • Padma Shri Award (2001) • CNN IBN Indian of the Year (2013) • Padma Bhushan Award (2014) • CNN IBN Indian of the Year (2016)
Personal Life
Date of Birth	17 June 1973 (Sunday)
Age (as of 2024)	51 Years
Birthplace	Calcutta
Zodiac sign	Gemini
Signature
Nationality	Indian
Hometown	Calcutta, West Bengal
School	• La Martiniere, Calcutta • Madras Christian College Higher Secondary School, Chennai
College/University	St. Xavier's College, Calcutta
Religion/Religious Views	Christianity
Food Habit	Non-vegetarian
Hobbies	Scuba Diving, Cooking
Controversies	• Sania's disappointment with Paes: In 2012, tennis player, Sania Mirza criticized Leander Paes's father Vece Paes, for asking her to give a written statement on her intention to pair with his son in a mixed doubles event at the Olympics. The decision to pair Sania and Leander was taken by All India Tennis Association after Leander had refused to play with Vishnu Vardhan. [2]India Today • Sania's criticism on Leander: In 2016, Sania Mirza criticized Leander for questioning the selection of the Indian mixed doubles team for the Rio Games. In an twitter post, she said, The ONLY way to win with a toxic person, is not to play. [3]The Tribune • Domestic Violence case against Paes: In 2016, Leander's rumoured ex-wife, Rhea Pillai filed a domestic violence case against him. She alleged that Leander would cause verbal, emotional and economic abuse to her. In 2022, he was found guilty of domestic abuse. [4]The Indian Express • End of the strongest duo: Leander attracted controversy when his friendship with Mahesh Bhupathi ended in 2000. In an interview, Leander alleged that Mahesh had a close relationship with Mahima Chaudhary. In an interview, he said, It was hard for me, 1999. There were so many things for me that were breaking down. I was at a very fragile stage in my life with my tennis partnership, with my relationship. And I was being told rumours about Mahesh being close to her, very close to her. [5]Hindustan Times
Relationships & More
Marital Status	Unmarried
Affairs/Girlfriends	• Mahima Chaudhary (2000-2003) (actress) • Rhea Pillai (2005-2014) (model) • Tanvi Shah (2016) (tennis player) • Kim Sharma (actress) (2021-2023) Note: On 5 September 2021, Kim Sharma took to Instagram to confirm their relationship. In April 2023, it was reported that they parted ways. [6]The Times of India
Marriage Date	Year, 2005
Family
Wife/Spouse	Rhea Pillai (rumored ex-wife) (model) (2005- 2014)
Children	Daughter- Aiyana
Parents	Father- Vece Paes (hockey player) Mother- Jennifer Paes (basketball coach)
Siblings	Sister- 2 • Jacqueline • Maria
Favourites
Sport	Football
Actor	Aamir Khan, Amitabh Bachchan
Tennis Player(s)	Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer
Film	Bollywood- Sholay (1975)
Singer(s)	Andrea Bocelli, Adele
Book(s)	Nelson Mandela ( Long Walk to Freedom) (1994), Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts, Michael Jordan: The Life (2014), My Life (2004)
Ice cream	Haagen Dazs mint chocolate chip
Food	Southern Indian with rice, rasam (a broth you put in the rice), with Chicken, Sushi
Music	Soul, Jazz
Style Quotient
Cars Collection	• He owns a Porsche Cayenne. • He owns a Ford Endeavour.

Some Lesser Known Facts About Leander Paes

• Leander Paes is an Indian tennis player who is known for holding the record for the most doubles wins in the Davis Cup.

• His father belonged to Goa, and his mother was from Calcutta. His father was a member of the Indian hockey team in the 1972 Munich Olympics. His mother was the captain of the Indian basketball team in the 1980 Asian basketball championship. In an interview, he said that he always wanted to win Olympics just like his father did. He used to polish his father’s medal every Saturday, which he said were the best moments of his life. He also used to accompany his mother who was the coach of the National Basketball Team to matches, practice sessions and press conferences. In an interview, he talked about learning tennis from his parents and said,
  

  They say your parents are your first teachers and nothing truer has been said. My parents were my first gurus who taught me resilience, dedication and mental tenacity. For a small boy, who was taking on a path that wasn’t very popularly tread in those times, these initial lessons changed the way I looked at life, both personally and professionally. Because I chose sport as my profession, the expectations and pressures of being my parents’ son was felt every day.”

  

  Leander Paes as a youngster with his father

• He started his career in 1985 after he took admission to the Britannia Amritraj Tennis Academy in Madras (now Chennai) and received coaching from Dave O’Meara. In an interview, he talked about his early years in Kolkata and said,
  

  I consider myself extremely lucky to have grown up in a city that was so passionate about sports and valued community living above anything else. In the early years, most of my sports experiences were either at school, or with my parents or at the various clubs that they were part of. But it was in the Maidans of Kolkata that I learnt the meaning of being a sports person in the truest sense of the word. Kolkata provided an amazing environment to nurture a young champion and it taught me the lessons of teamwork and community building.”

  

  Leander Paes at the Britannia Amritraj Tennis Academy

• In 1990, at the age of seventeen, he won the Wimbledon Junior title and earned No. 1 in the junior world rankings.
  

  Leander Paes after winning Wimbledon Junior

• In 1992, at the age of nineteen, he reached the quarter-finals of the doubles event in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.
  

  Leander Paes at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics

• In 1996, he became the first Indian after KD Jadhav to win a bronze medal in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. During this match, his wrist was severely injured. In an interview, he talked about playing the match even after the injury, and said,
  

  My right wrist was severely injured before coming into that match. Even the physiotherapist and doctors said I was taking a huge risk playing in that match, that I could jeopardise my entire career. I think as an athlete, the greatest thing for me was to win a medal for our people.”

  

  Leander Paes with his Bronze Medal at Atlanta Olympics 1996

• In the 1990s, Paes and Bhupathi were considered the most successful partnership duo. They reached the semi-final of three Grand Slams, the Australian Open, the French Open and the US Open. In 1999, the duo became the first Indian duo to win a doubles event at a Grand Slam.
  

  Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi holding the Wimbledon 1999 cup

• In 2000, he got a chance to carry the Indian flag at the opening ceremony of the Sydney Olympics.
  

  Leander Paes holding the Indian flag at the opening ceremony of the Sydney Olympics

• In 2003, it was suspected that he had a brain tumour after which he was admitted to the MD Anderson Cancer Center, but later, it was cleared that he had a brain infection. While he was recovering from a brain infection, he missed the US Open.

• In 2006, he won two gold medals in the men’s doubles and mixed doubles at the Doha Asian Games.
  

  Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi with their gold medals for Men’s Doubles at the Doha Asian Games in Doha in 2006

• In 2010, he became one of the Board of Directors of Olympic Gold Quest that is a foundation co-founded by Geet Sethi and Prakash Padukone to support talented Indian athletes.

• In 2012, he was chosen as the sports ambassador of Haryana by the Government of India.

• In 2013, he made his film debut with the film ‘Rajdhani Express’ and played the role of Keshav.

• In 2013, he won the US Open men’s doubles title and became the oldest man (40-years-old at that time) to win the title.
  

  Leander Paes wins the US Open men’s doubles title in 2013

• In 2015, Leander and Martina Hingis reached the semi-final of the Australian Open mixed doubles. In an interview, he talked about his partnership with Martina and said,
  

  Martina and myself have been playing together for the Washington Kastles at the World Team Tennis and have been unbeaten for two seasons, but somehow we never go together for the Slams. I was too shy to ask Martina to play a Slam with me and she probably felt the same.”

  

  Leander Paes and Martina Hingis in the semi-final of the Australian Open mixed doubles

• In 2016, in an interview, his ex-girlfriend, Mahima Chaudhary, opened up about her breakup with Paes and said,
  

  It wasn’t really shocking for me when I came to know that he was going around with someone else. His exit had no impact on my life. In fact, I became more mature as a person. I feel he did the same thing with Rhea (Pillai) as well.”

  

  Leander Paes with Mahima Choudhary

• In 2016, his daughter was diagnosed with a brain tumour due to which his ex-wife, Rhea Pillai and Leander had to live together.

• On 7 April 2018, after he won his 43rd doubles victory, he became the most successful player in Davis Cup history.

• In 2020, he shared a picture on Instagram of the time when he was six years old and won a sports competition.
  

  Leander Paes at the age of six

• In 2021, when the Olympics were postponed due to COVID-19, he said that he would not wait for the 2024 Olympics and the Rio Olympics in 2016 was his last game. In an interview, he talked about this and said,
  

  If the Tokyo Olympics is cancelled then I have already played my last Olympics in Rio. I am not going to wait for the next Olympics.”

• In 2021, he was featured in a documentary web series ‘Break Point’ on ZEE5 that was based on the partnership of Leander and Mahesh in double matches.
  

  Poster of the web series ‘Break Point’

• In 2021, in an interview, he talked about his political venture and said,
  

  The opportunity of joining politics has been coming to me for many years. But this time, it was the right opportunity, the correct time, I was in the right position of my life where I have finished with my tennis career and have the time, space, mind and the passion to give to this (new career in politics).”

  

  Leander Paes joining the All India Trinamool Congress

• In an interview, he referred to himself as an ‘Olympic baby’ and stated the reason behind this and said,
  

  I am an Olympic baby! If my father was not in Munich in 1972 when Palestinian terrorists took 12 Israeli hostage and the games were not shut down for four days, I would have never happened. I was conceived in those four days. I guess my parents had nothing else better to do and that’s why I am an Olympic baby.”

• He is the first Indian who competed in six Olympic Games consecutively.

• In 2022, it was reported that Kim and Leander were planning a court marriage.

• On 7 May 2022, he played a football match as a part of the All Stars Football Club to raise funds for a charitable cause.
  

  Leander Paes with other stars playing football for All Stars Football Club

• In 2022, an animation series titled ‘Little Leander,’ based on the life of Paes was shown to children. The series was made by Green Gold Animation, the studio that also made the Chota Bheem series. In an interview, he talked about the animation series and said,
  

  I have a lot of free time now that I’ve retired from professional tennis after 31 years. I’ve already dabbled with acting through films and documentaries, but one of my biggest ambitions is to inspire and motivate today’s youth all around the world to pursue sports as a career.”

  

  Leander Paes with the animation cut out of ‘Little Leander’

• He is an avid dog lover and often posts pictures of them on social media.
  

  Leander Paes with his dog

• He is often featured on various magazine covers.
  

  Leander Paes on the cover of a magazine

• He is a fitness freak and often posts pictures of his workout on social media.
  

  Leander Paes working out in the gym