Five-time gold medallist Leander Paes has pulled out of the Asian Games in a row over his doubles partner, dealing a heavy blow to India's tennis hopes. Paes, who has 18 Grand Slam doubles titles and eight Asian Games medals in all, had been paired with Sumit Nagal, a singles specialist ranked at 300th in the world.
"Despite my repeated requests, from so many weeks in advance, it is sad that we have not been able to put a doubles specialist in the team for a credible second doubles pairing for the Asian Games," Paes said in a statement. "I believe that my absence would only help the rest to play more events, be it doubles or mixed doubles," added the 45-year-old. Indian captain Zeeshan Ali called the last-minute pull-out "very disappointing" and said it had diminished the team's medal chances.