"I would like to see more unity in the team. I feel that in the last couple of matches we lost, with better leadership and more unity we could have won," a visibly disappointed Paes told The Indian Express here on Thursday.

"Many different people are looking for their own personal means rather than pulling together as a team. With the result, little bit of charm has been taken away from Davis Cup," he said. "Only when the chips are down that the leadership and strength of the team are really tested. In that case, I'm afraid, the record has not been that good. Not many in the team have come out with good marks. Our team will have to improve unity to get into the next league of the competition."

Paes sure has reason tobe disappointed because he feels the sense of importance when playing a Davis Cup match is just not there. He, however, felt that more commitment from the team members should have put them in a much higher league than what they are at the moment. "It's a question of knowing what is right for the team. That is of primary importance because when we play Davis Cup it is the team that matters. Nothing else."

That explains why Paes was doing things his way during practice while others did their own things their way. It was more like many teams within a team. The cracks in the team, apparently, is a manifestation of what is now being termed "slowing down of communication" between Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi, the third best doubles pair in the world.

"When we ranked 150 in the world, nobody really worried about us. Now that we have become number two or three, everybody want to be part of the hype. As a result, both me and Mahesh are losing out. We need to know the essence of our relationship and our unity has beentested. I know things can be much better. We are friends going through a tough time and we have to let it know that we are there for each other," Paes said.

"Yet, our camaraderie has been diluted and we have to find a way to solve the problem as quickly as possible. Sadly, people are trying for a confrontation between both of us and that's not nice," he said.

Paes, however, refused to divulge what exactly are the problematic areas but agreed that most of them were off the court which naturally wormed their way into the performances, as well. They are yet to win a doubles title this year and have slipped in the rankings as well.

It is unlikely that Paes will have a new partner soon because he thinks that everything can be sorted out provided the effort is there from all quarters. At the same time, he has been getting offers from other top doubles players but may not entertain any of them because getting the number one slot is crucial for both him and Bhupathi. That is only if there is a thaw inrelations.

But now, one thing is sure. There will be wholesale changes in the Davis Cup before the year runs out.