He played one of his first international matches way back in 1990 during Asian Games in Beijing. 28 years later, Leander Adrian Paes became the most accomplished doubles player in the history of Davis Cup on the Chinese soil as he, partnered by fellow Indian Rohan Bopanna, registered his record 43rd win in his country’s Davis Cup tie against China in Tianjin on Saturday.

 “I want to dedicate this world record for that I had to work for 29 years to my parents, my daughter, to every single Davis Cup captain, all the doubles partner I have had and all my fans,” Paes told CGTN after surpassing Italian Nicola Pietrangeli’s earlier record of 42 Davis Cup doubles wins.  

Known for his never-say-die attitude and winning matches from the jaws of defeat, Paes recreated his magic at Tianjin Tennis Center winning the do-or-die doubles match from the brink of defeat. 

Trailing by a set and 3-5 in the tie-breaker of the second set against a spirited Chinese pair of Gong Maoxin and Zhang Ze, the 44-year-old defied age and a series of unforced errors to script a historic turnaround and went on to win his record-setting match in three sets.

His erstwhile partner Mahesh Bhupathi, with whom Paes went on to become the world number one doubles pair, apart from winning a slew of Grand Slam doubles titles and a record 24 consecutive Davis Cup doubles matches, was the captain of the Indian team that took on China in the World Group qualifier in Tianjin. 

As his team scraped through to the World Group playoff, a visibly relieved Bhupathi later mentioned, “It’s very exciting for a fellow countryman to hold a world record and we have been waiting for him to break that milestone for a long time. I am happy that he has done it.”

Paes, the ageless wonder with 18 Grand Slam titles, also holds the record for being the oldest man to win a Grand Slam. Amazingly, 43 of the players in the current Top 100 of the ATP rankings and 21 players in the Top 100 of the ATP Doubles rankings weren’t even born when Paes played his first Davis Cup doubles match in February 1990 against Japan. But it seems that age can’t wither his killer instinct and hunger for wins.