I have been forced to resort to issuing this public statement in order to clear my stand in the recent allegations by my ex husband Leander Paes, which are not only false and baseless but also ridiculous.

I have been slandered in the media by a man who has clearly taken undue advantage of his public status.

As Leander does not have a strong case in court, he is resorting to underhand tactics through a few tabloids from time to time to malign my name publicly, without any proof to back his claims. I have refrained from making any allegations through the media because I want to protect our daughter from this pain. Leander does not realize that no child should be subjected to such public humiliation, as it has a deep, negative impact on the child.

I wish that as two adults, we can privately deal with our issues and let the court decide the final outcome, rather than this mud slinging that is taking place at present.