Paes & Amritraj Became First Asian Men To Be Inducted Into THF

Former tennis players Leander Paes and Vijay Amritraj have been elected to the International Tennis Hall of Fame (ITHF). They are the first Asian male tennis players to achieve such a feat and to be included in the International Tennis Hall of Fame. They will be formally included in the Tennis Hall of Fame in July 2024.

• Apart from them, it has been decided to include many other players in the International Tennis Hall of Fame.

Players to be included in the ITHF 2024:

• Leander Paes has won 18 Grand Slam titles in men's doubles or mixed doubles. Vijay Amritraj is a former player, broadcaster and promoter.
• Leander Paes has been included as a player in this category. Whereas Vijay Amritraj has been selected in the contributor category along with the player.
• The contributor category also includes broadcasters, commentators and journalists. 
• Apart from Amritraj, British journalist Richard Evans has also been included in the contributor category.
• The Contributor category primarily recognises people who have contributed to tennis around the world.
• Vijay Amritraj was a professional player in the 1970s and 1980s. Amritraj helped India reach the Davis Cup finals in 1974 and 1987.

Process to join the Tennis Hall of Fame:

• First of all, the player is nominated in the category of respected players.
• After this, the fans who like these players vote.
• The results of these voting will be announced in January 2024.
• The winners will be formally inducted into the Tennis Hall of Fame in July 2024.

'Li Na' Asia's first female player included in ITHF:

• Chinese player 'Li Na', who has won two Grand Slam titles, is the first Asian player to join the women's category.
• She was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame (ITHF) in the year 2019.
• Li Na has won the women's singles title in the Australian Open and French Open.

About Leander Paes:

• Leander Paes was born on 17 June 1973 in Kolkata.
• Leander Paes' father Weiss Paes won a bronze medal in the 1972 Munich Olympics.
• Leander Paes' mother Jennifer Paes captained the Asian basketball team in the 1980s.
• Leander Paes began his playing career on the junior circuit under the tutelage of Dave O'Meara, winning the 1990 Junior Wimbledon.
• Leander Paes won the bronze medal in Atlanta 1996 by defeating Brazil's Fernando Meligeni.
• After KD Jadhav, Leander Paes became the first Indian tennis player to win an individual medal.
• Leander Paes was honoured with the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award by the Indian Government.
• Leander Paes was actively associated with tennis from 1990 to 2020.

About International Tennis Hall of Fame (ITHF):

• Established: 1880
• Founder: James J. Van Alen
• It is located at the ITHF in Newport, Rhode Island, United States.
• It honours both players and other contributors to the game of tennis.