India's top tennis players Mahesh Bhupathi, Saketh Myneni, Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan and Sriram Balaji have been granted wild card entries into the doubles draw of Chennai Open, the organisers announced on Monday.
In this era of oversharing, retweeting and everything-instagramming, the star is not any kind of enigmatic figure of mystery; s/he is one of us, says Raja Sen.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Monday
Ace doubles player Leander Paes and his big-serving partner Rohan Bopanna did not practise or play enough together to give themselves a decent chance to win a medal in the men's doubles event at the Rio Olympic Games, said the former's ex-partner Mahesh Bhupathi in Mumbai on Monday. "The (men's) doubles team was definitely under-prepared, in fact there no preparation - that's the right word. "They did not practise, did not play any matches together. Even when Leander and me were not playing on tour in 2004 and 2008 (Olympic Games in Athens and Beijing), we always came together, played a couple of tournaments together. That's what the Olympics demands," said Bhupathi at the Khar Gymkhana in Mumbai.
India's Olympic aspirations failed to blossom in the face of personal egos of star tennis players even as the legend of Sania Mirza continued to grow and an ageless Leander Paes basked in personal glory in 2016.
India were left to rue a missed opportunity in tennis with Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna's losing in the semi-finals of the mixed doubles after Lalita Babar became the first woman in three decades to enter the final of a track event, on Day 8 of the 2016 Olympic Games, in Rio de Janeiro, on Saturday.
Former cricketers, including Sachin Tendulkar, among other sportspersons, lavished praise on the Indian cricket team after the defending champions beat arch-rivals Pakistan by 76 runs in their World Cup opener in Adelaide.
The prime minister was often seen vigorously thumping the desk, prompting his Cabinet colleagues and NDA MPs to follow suit.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Monday.
As the year 2016 draws to a close, vote for the best Indian sportsperson of the year.