Paes, Bhupathi get wild card for World doubles

Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi will be the eighth pair in the Gold Flake ATP World doubles championship, to be played in Bangalore from December 13.

Tournament director Krishna Bhupathi, in a statement on Tuesday, said the ace Indian pair has been awarded a wild card entry.

Paes and Bhupathi have been in the final of the World doubles championship twice, in 1997 and 1999. Last year they were the number one team in the world on the ATP Tour ranking and were named the doubles World champions by the ITF. They were the first team since 1952 to reach every Grand Slam final in a single calender year, winning the French Open and Wimbledon.

Mahesh Bhupathi said both he and Leander are looking forward to the event, which is being played "in our own backyard".

Krishna Bhupathi, father of Mahesh, said both of them have been superb ambassadors for tennis in India and their partnership on court made them one of the most outstanding doubles combinations in the last dive years. However, a series of injuries this year had prevented them from playing together.