Leander might be paired with Ramkumar

Leander Paes might team up with Ramkumar Ramnathan instead of Sumit Nagal at the Asian Games after captain Zeeshan Ali said he will consider Ramanathan’s request to pair up with the senior pro. In the originally planned combinations, Rohan was teamed up Divij and Paes was paired with Nagal for the men’s doubles event.

After his sensational run at the ATP Newport event, where he ended a runner-up to Steve Johnson, Ramkumar had said he would love to win a medal with Paes at the Asian Games, beginning August 18 in Jakarta and Palembang. “I will have a chat with the players when we reach there and then take a decision. There are a lot of different aspects to it. I don’t want to take any decision now but there is a possibility, considering, that Ram and Leander have played together in the past and know each other’s game well,” Zeeshan told PTI.

CHINA TO SEND 845-MEMBER TEAM

BEIJING:Asian powerhouse China today announced its 845-member strong delegation of athletes, including 19 Olympic champions, who will take part in the 2018 Asian Games. The Chinese delegation, which also includes 38 foreign coaches from 15 countries in 22 events, has signed up to compete in 376 disciplines of 38 sports out of the 40 on offer at the 18th Asiad. In the 2014 Asian Games, China had sent its largest ever contingent of the 897-athlete for any Games overseas and was the top medal winner with 151 gold, 109 silver and 85 bronze. Among all the athletes in the delegation, 631 of them will make their international debut in Jakarta, echoing the sports-governing body’s call to embrace the continental meet as a high-exposure test for young talents ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. PTI