Friends again? Leander Paes hops into Mahesh Bhupathi's gravy train

Leander Paes has buried the hatchet with Mahesh Bhupathi once again. Or so it seems.

The 42-year-old, who won the Wimbledon mixed doubles title with Marina Hingis, has joined Bhupathi's International Premier Tennis League (IPTL). Last year, Paes had raised serious doubts over the sustainability and transparency of the league.

On Saturday, Bhupathi announced that his long-time former partner had signed with the Japan Warriors franchise for the second edition. Paes had turned out for Vijay Amritraj's Champions Tennis League (CTL) and appeared for the Punjab Marshalls in the IPL-style tournament in 2014.

This is what Paes had said last season, "There is no transparency; nobody knows where it is going. I am hesitant because the quantum offered to the players is so mammoth that to get those numbers for tennis in India is a tough ask. For me, these are big questions especially when someone is putting $3 million to get someone like Rafael Nadal on their team."

What prompted him to change his mind is anybody's guess. The IPTL was hugely successful and the stakes are going to get higher this year

"There's a very few players who can entertain on the tennis court, especially in this format which is fast and furious. As Novak Djokovic had said no one expected it to be that competitive (last year). When it comes to net play, Paes is the fastest guy in the world. You will see a lot of exciting points from him. It will be fun for the fans," Bhupathi said on Saturday.