‘Bhupathi handled it badly, Paes also at fault’

Amritraj, Bhupathi’s predecessor, said the captain should have made it clear to Paes that he was not in the playing four and Paes should not have come to Bengaluru if he was not assured of a place in the playing squad. 

Paes had accused Bhupathi of using his position to exclude him from the team while the captain said he had never actually promised him a place in the final four and had given him the option of not coming to Bengaluru as reserve.

“It’s just a new chapter in old story. It’s just tragic that it has cropped up again. There is fault on both sides. It was pretty badly handled by Mahesh. Why did Mahesh not send a mail to Leander and told him clearly that you are are not in final four? If he had decided to pick Rohan two months back, why keep this guy (Leander) hanging?,” Amritraj told PTI.

“Did he want to fool the Uzbeks by picking four singles players? Nobody is going to get fooled like this. And Lee should not have come to Bangalore at all if he was not sure of playing. 

“All this confusion could have been avoided. All Mahesh needed to do was send an e-mail to Leander that he was not being considered in final four and mark a copy to AITA.” 

Paes had left Bengaluru midway into the tie, a move which Bhupathi said was final nail in the coffin. The captain also did not like the fact that Paes spoke to media despite his gag order. However, Amritraj felt there Paes had no reason to stay back in Bengaluru, doing nothing. “What’s the point in hanging around? The team was already 2-0 up after day one. It was better if he left for the United States  and get acclimatised to the  conditions for the next tournament. There was no point leaving on Monday. 

“He should not have put himself for humiliation. He should not have come to Bangalore,” felt Amritraj. 

Denouncing the way Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes publicly sparred over Davis Cup selection, AITA on Monday said it expects the veteran players to behave in a mature manner. Bhupathi on Sunday made public his chat with Paes to counter accusations that he used his position to exclude him from the playing squad. 

“We expect these senior pros to be more mature. The way they are going about it, we are not appreciating it. We have to talk to them and make sure they behave in a much more mature manner,” AITA Secretary General Hironmoy told PTI. 

Chatterjee said Paes should have avoided making comments on his exclusion during the tie. “Leander should not have spoken when the tie was on. Mahesh did the right thing by speaking after the tie was over,” Chatterjee felt.