Leander Paes says his whole life is about perseverance

Leander Paes and Martina Hingis after their Mixed Doubles victory

Indian Tennis legend Leander Paes believes that his whole life has been about perseverance and just trying to find a way to succeed. The 42-year-old along with his Swiss partner Martina Hingis went on to grab their third Grand Slam of the year, following victories at Australian Open and Wimbledon.

The pair who were seeded fourth, went past the unseeded American duo of Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Sam Querrey, 6-4 3-6 10-7, in a tense final, which lasted for more than 77 minutes, on Friday. The Indian ace created history by winning his ninth mixed doubles Grand Slam title, thus making him the most successful male mixed-doubles player in history and also the most successful mixed-doubles player in India, going past his former partner, Mahesh Bhupathi’s record of eight titles. It was also the Indian’s 17th Grand Slam title, in addition to his eight doubles titles. He credits Hingis for her technique and caliber on the field. "Martina said something that was quite interesting. She said you have to have the guts to go after something, and I don't believe that I personally have the technique or the caliber of talent that Martina has. One thing I do have is the guts. I will go for it. It's been part of-- my whole life is about perseverance, just trying to find a way to succeed," he said, as quoted by the Times of India.

Hingis phenomenal on and off the court: Paes

Paes said he enjoys a great partnership with Hingis, who he described as a phenomenal player. "Sometimes the chips are against you, sometimes they fool you. What I love about this teamwork is that in any partnership there's got to be one person who brings the energy to the team. There's got to be one person who takes all the pressure on their shoulder and drives the team forward.”, he said. "I know if I can keep Martina happy if I can keep her relaxed, the tennis I don't even have to worry about. This young girl is phenomenal on the tennis court and off of it,” he continued.He said he enjoys training with Hingis and learns a lot from her. “We actually have our best times when we are on the practice court. Like yesterday, we were there yesterday. We were on the practice court before the Australian Open. We were on for like two hours practising for a final. Just having fun. I learn a lot from her.”