AC Milan legend Paolo Maldini is one of the greatest footballers of all time. He had won an incredible 9 Serie A titles along with 5 Champions League titles with the club.
As if his footballing talent is not enough alone, the Italian will now make his debut in tennis as a professional at the age of 49. Having retired from the game of football in 2009, Maldini had took his time to work on his tennis.
He has earned a wild card for the Aspria Tennis Cup at the Aspria Harbour Club of Milan, a second-tier ATP tournament. He will be pairing with his coach and former professional Stefano Landonio, 45, in the doubles.
The pair will play in the Milan open as Maldini is set to celebrate his 49th birthday. It can be considered quite astonishing that the defender had managed to become a professional in tennis at such an old age.
But no one can deny his incredible commitment and fitness during his football days which might have played a part in his late surge in tennis. Most people would take up tennis as a hobby after retiring from football, but Maldini had enough determination to become very good in the game which paved way for him to enter an ATP event.
‘Paolo’s gifted with a good serve in addition to some decent shots,’ Maldini’s coach Landonio has told the Tennis Italiano website.
‘He’s also improving his volleys and while he may not be catching the eye in any particular part of his game, he does not have any weaknesses either.
‘Since he only started playing five or six years ago, there are some deficits in terms of technique.
‘If he’d started working on his technique earlier, then who knows?’
The soon to be 49-year old had won an unbelievable 26 titles with AC Milan during his playing days which lasted over 24 years at the highest level. He made a jaw-dropping 902 appearances for the club and was part of one of the best teams of all time in club football before he ultimately retired in 2009.
We can only hope he finds more success in Tennis to become a multi-sport legend in the coming days.