Leander Paes didn't say in as many words that he will team up with estranged partner Mahesh Bhupathi for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, but admitted that Bhupathi is the obvious choice for the mega event.
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"At this moment Mahesh is the obvious choice," said Paes, at a function to unveil the Olympic torch in Mumbai on Wednesday.
"But the Olympics are still seven months away. I think we both need to be given the freedom to concentrate on our priorities at the moment. There is the Davis Cup and Australian Open; I am playing an event in the next two weeks. And Mahesh is also recovering from back surgery. As we get closer to the event we will start thinking about it."
The Indian ace added that having played with Bhupathi for so long, the duo will not need elaborate preparation on the way to Beijing.
"We have done it for seven years; we don't forget how the other plays. It won't take long to rekindle the magic. The aspect of playing together is not a worry; I am more concerned about going into the Olympics in peak form and fitness."
Given that India's next best-ranked player on the ATP doubles charts is Rohan Bopanna at 66, the Davis Cup captain will also find himself short of options to tinker with the team.
Paes, who won a bronze medal at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996 and lost the bronze medal match narrowly to Croatian duo of Mario Ancic and Ivan Ljubicic at 2004 Athens, will play at the Games for the fifth successive time.
"This is my fifth Olympics; I had promised my dad four. All the events I've participated in I've either won a medal or come close to winning one. The best part about playing this sport has been that I got to represent my people and my country."
With the Olympics still some time away, the 34-year-old said he is looking forward to the new partnership with Australia's Paul Hanley. The duo will come together at the season-opening ATP tournament at Adelaide, which clashes with the Chennai Open.
"They've changed the surface at the Australian Open, and Adelaide and Sydney have the same synthetic courts. Also, it doesn't make sense for him to fly all the way down to Chennai and go back to Australia," he reasoned.
India's premier athlete, long jumper Anju Bobby George was also part of the event in Mumbai.
Anju, who finished fifth in the last Olympics, said she hopes to do better in Beijing.
"She has done well in the past world championships, finishing in the top-10 of most events," said her husband Bobby George.
"We deliberately had a low-profile 2006 so that she doesn't tire herself out for the coming season."
Apart from herself, Anju said the women's 4x400m relay team and triple jumper Ranjeet from Tamil Nadu are prospects for athletics medals in 2008. "God willing!" she added.
Photograph: Leander Paes and Anju Bobby George unveil the Olympic torch, which has been designed by PC manufacturer Lenovo/Arun Patil
