Comeback dream come true for Paes

MELBOURNE (Reuters) -- An emotional Leander Paes reached the mixed doubles final of the Australian Open on Friday in his first tournament since recovering from a brain abscess.

Indian cricket greats Sunil Gavaskar and Ravi Shastri were among those who rose to applaud the courageous Paes after he and 47-year-old Martina Navratilova, the defending champions, beat Jonathan Erlich and Liezel Huber 6-4 6-4 at Melbourne Park.

"It's magic. It's already a dream come true. In the final, we'll just be playing for the cherries on top," said a teary-eyed Paes, who was sidelined for five months with a non-malignant brain lesion.

"I'm pretty much trying to put it all behind me. To be here was a long shot (a few) months ago, so being in the final is just phenomenal. We are playing like two kids in a candy store."

Wearing a baggy, long-sleeve shirt to hide the extra kilos he gained during his enforced layoff, the 30-year-old from Calcutta emphatically closed out with an ace to take the fourth seeds into Sunday's final against Nenad Zimonjic and Elena Bovina.

Paes was rushed to an Orlando hospital last August after complaining of severe headaches and his condition was initially suspected to be cancer.

However, India's Davis Cup captain was diagnosed with a parasitic infection of the brain, which was treatable with drugs.

It took a lecture from his father to convince Paes to play again.

OLYMPIC GOAL

"I had very little motivation to come back when I looked in the mirror and saw all the (extra) weight," said Paes, whose goal for 2004 is to play in his fourth Olympics in Athens.

"But my father said I'd promised I would play in four Olympics, so I had no choice. The six months out gave me a breather and now I'm as hungry as ever."

Paes turned down the chance to join Dutch soccer club PSV Eindhoven as an under-12 in order to concentrate on tennis and, like his parents, represent India at the Olympics.

His father, Vece, won Olympic bronze in field hockey at the Munich Games in 1972, while his mother Jennifer played basketball.

"Soccer was my love but I came from a family that represented India at the Olympics. I was actually conceived at the 1972 Olympics in Munich during the troubles with the Palestinians," said Paes.

"Everything was shut down for four days. No newspapers, no radio, no TV...and the athletes weren't allowed outside their rooms, so I guess there was me."

Bronze medallist in singles at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, Paes has built a reputation for his giant-killing Davis Cup exploits, producing big wins against players such as Goran Ivanisevic and Wayne Ferreira.

"When the president down to the common man are out there supporting you, you can't help but put your heart into it," he said.

"It's magic representing 1.2 billion people. They are the wind beneath my wings."

Copyright 2004 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.