Leander Paes' Racquet Science:Play for Yourself, Not an Image!

NEW DELHI, November 8, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --

The superstar of Indian tennis serves a string of incredible aces and shares his life lessons in Men's Health magazine's 7^th anniversary special issue

It's a straight-sets victory no other magazine could pull off. In what is perhaps his most bone-chilling, and revealing, interviews ever, Indian tennis superstar Leander Paes bares his heart on a range of life lessons in the November issue of Men's Health magazine, India's largest selling men's lifestyle magazine. Sample this from the oldest man ever to win a Grand Slam title in the open era: "I never quit… the word means nothing to me!" He is honest, candid, even belligerent at times, but most of all, Paes gives a rare peek into the secret of his winning ways.

"Whatever I do, whatever environment I am in, I try to make myself happy doing it. The journey, for me, is always more important than the destination…because the euphoria of reaching the destination doesn't last long," he says. Paes knows very well what it means: "The euphoria of winning my first Grand Slam lasted for just about 12 hours. There is no comparison between the 12 hours and the 20 years it took me to get there."

Paes says he's been a "student" all his life, the key to reinventing his game ever so regularly, just the way he'd change his doubles partners. "I am passionate about what I do because I don't think I am necessarily talented in one thing that I do. If you are talking tennis, I am 5'10" on a good day… I don't possess a big serve, can barely hit topspin backhand… but I have many other skills, my instinctive ability, my student-like approach to studying my opponents and many others which I use to be the best I can be."

The Men's Health feature, with some great pictures by celebrity photographer Subi Samuel, promises to be a delight for any tennis fan. Paes says he's changed a lot since the days when he started playing tennis just so that he could play at Wimbledon. "I always play for myself and not an image. When you do that, you are never afraid of failures… you are not afraid of making an idiot of yourself. Because when you play just to satisfy yourself, you don't think of anything but the millions of repetitions you'd need to perfect a stroke. After so many years on the circuit, I am able to hit a roll backhand and my cross-court backhand now is a top spin."

Adds Jamal Shaikh, editorial director of Men's Health: "Leander Paes is like the Energizer Bunny, he never stops going. In the face of cancer, failed friendships and love, we've seen Leander keep his motivation going. He's the Men's Health guy who shows us what consistency is all about."

ABOUT MEN'S HEALTH
Men's Health has consistently been India's largest-selling men's magazine since it was launched in November 2006. Commonly called MH, it is the friend, mentor and guide that provides its readers with well-researched, scientifically-ratified advice on every aspect of a man's life. It covers fitness, health, nutrition and weight-loss, fashion and grooming, sex and relationships, career and stress and a variety of other topics, making it a wholesome lifestyle publication for the ambitious, forward-thinking Indian male.

You could also download a digital copy of the magazine which can be read on tablets and smartphones. Visit http://www.menshealthindia.com/digitalmagazine to know more about the digital editions.

Vishwalok Nath,
Head - Marketing & Syndications,
India Today Group Digital
digital.marketing@intoday.com
Ph: +91-120-4807100