Paes plays down Indian Express's reunion chances in Beijing

New Delhi, May 27 (UNI) It might come as a blow to India's chances of winning a medal at the forthcoming Olympics, as Leander Paes played down the chances of a possible reunion with his estranged partner Mahesh Bhupathi during the next year's sporting extravaganza in Beijing.

''The Olympics is still a way away. We still have more than a year away. At present my focus is on Wimbledon and I'd like to win it,'' Leander told 'CNN-IBN'.

''I find that I'm still in the peak of my career and I really want to focus on the ATP Tour,'' he added.

However, Paes has not direcly ruled out the possibility of the 'Indian Express' coming together in the courts during Olympics, but seemed confident about the country's new talents.

''Looking at the Olympics, I also look at the boys who are actually representing the country at the Davis Cup,'' he said, adding, ''When the time comes to think of the Olympics, I will get down to that. But, right now, I'm concentrating on the coming Grand Slams.'' Incidentally, Paes comment came just days after Mahesh Bhupathi virtually offered an olive branch to his estranged partner about a possible reunion for the nation's interest of winning a medal at the Beijing Olympics.

Speaking on their fall-out after Doha Asiad, Paes said, ''I have learnt that sometimes my forthrightness is not really appreciated in terms of going to the media.'' He also expressed unhappiness over Bhupathi's decision not to represent India in Davis Cup under his captaincy.

''It would be nice if Mahesh was playing the Davis Cup for the country, and that is something I do miss out on. But each individual athlete has his own values and systems to follow.'' Paes who has seven Grand Slam titles under his credit, also expressed concerns over India's declining graph in world tennis, saying, ''I'm a bit concerned about the options that we have in singles. We really don't have a big pool of players to choose from.'' The 34-year-old Indian also brushed away rumuors about his retirement plans and expressed his intension to carry on until the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi.

UNI