The Partnership is over

The 2006 Doha Asian Games has come to an end, with China heading the medals tally with 164 Gold medals. India has come in a respectable 8th Position with a total Gold Medal Haul of 10. In Shooting, Tennis, Chess, Kabaddi, the Indian team has proven itself to be very competitive with the rest of Asia. However, it is in Tennis, in which the country managed two Gold Medals and a Silver, that the people are sad. Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes have now split up permanently, and this pair, which was India's torch bearer in the past, will now no longer bear it.

This pair had put India firmly on the Tennis map. The year 1999 was a Golden year, with the pair coming in the final of all the 4 tennis Grandslams and winning in two of them. The intensity was there even in these games, hence they managed to win the Gold for the country. However, Egoism and Miscommunication have wrecked this pair, and now Mahesh Bhupathi has said that he will never team up with Leander and also he will never play for India as long as Leander and coach Nandan Bal is there.

There is speculation that Nandan Bal instead of Bridging the gap widened it furthur in the Asian Games. He and Leander Paes had questioned Bhupathi's commitment and questioned his ability to play for the country. Bhupathi has gone on record saying that the Doha Asian Games was his emotional Low point of his life, and thus has prompted him to not play with Paes and for India.

Miscommunication, Egoism and a possible Business Rivalry has led to the permanent splitting of India's greatest ever doubles pair. This has shown that personal rivalries and squabbles dominate the Indian players mind, rather than his commitment for the country. The actions of Leander Paes has possibly taken India one step back in the Tennis Map. While the country is in the euphoria of winning 10 Gold medals, nobody might take notice of the fact that the Torch Bearers of Indian Tennis are no longer going to bear the torch for India.