Sania Mirza won her first title of the season as she and her Chinese partner Shuai Zhang (Source: Sania Mirza / Twitter)
Sania Mirza won her first title of the season as she and her Chinese partner Shuai Zhang beat the pair of Kaitlyn Christian and Erin Routliffe in the women’s doubles final of the Ostrava Open on Sunday.
The second seeded Indo-Chinese duo defeated the third seeded pair of American Christian and New Zealander Routliffe 6-3 6-2 in the summit clash in one hour and four minutes.
The 34-year-old Sania and Zhang had defeated the Japanese pair 6-2 7-5 in the semifinals of the WTA 500 event.
It was Sania’s second final of the season, following a runner-up finish at the WTA 250 Cleveland event in the USA last month with Chirstina Mchale.
source: http://www.indianexpress.com / The Indian Express / Home> Sports> Tennis / by PTI / September 27th, 2021
The 33-year-old made a comeback to Fed Cup after four year and helped India qualify for the Play-offs for the first time in history.
File image of Sania Mirza (third from R) and Indian team at Fed Cup from earlier in 2020 | Via Indian Tennis Daily
Indian tennis star on Monday won the Fed Cup Heart Award from the Asia/Oceania zone for her performance on return from maternity break earlier this year.
The 33-year-old made a comeback to Fed Cup after four years and helped India qualify for the Play-offs for the first time in history, with 18-month old son Izhaan present in the stands. Mirza helped India remain unbeaten in doubles with a decisive win over Indonesia that secured second place in the group.
She is also the first Indian to win the award.
“It’s an honour to win the Fed Cup Heart Award as the first Indian,” Mirza, who was also India’s first Heart Award nominee, was quoted as saying on Fed Cup’s official website.
“I dedicate this award to the entire country and to all my fans and thank everyone for voting for me. I hope to bring more laurels to the country in the future.”
Along with the award, she also received a cheque for $2,000 to be donated to a charity and she opted to help with relief during the coronavirus crisis.
“I want to donate the money that I get from this award to the Telangana Chief Minister’s Relief Fund as the world is going through very difficult times with the virus,” she added.
Latvia’s Anastasija Sevastova won the Qualifiers award for her win against USA’s Serena Williams with Mexico’s Fernanda Contreras Gomez and Estonian Anett Kontaveit being the other zone winners.
@MirzaSania
I want to donate the funds that I get from this award to the Telangana CM relief Fund as the world is going through very difficult times with the virus .. thank you all
Mirza won the award for Asia/Oceania zone after securing 10,000 plus votes out of the total 16,985 cast for this year’s three regional Group I nominees, reported PTI.
The Fed Cup Heart Award winners were determined via online voting by fans which went on for a week starting from May 1.
Mirza’s vote share of over 60 per cent of the total votes is a testimony to the global popularity of the Indian star at the Fed Cup competition. She made a comeback to Fed Cup earlier in 2020 after four years. After giving birth to her son in October 2018, Mirza returned to the court in January this year and instantly achieved success by clinching the women’s doubles title at Hobart International alongside Nadiia Kichenok.
Former world No 1 in doubles and six-time Grand Slam champion, Mirza beat Indonesia’s 16-year-old Priska Madelyn Nugroho for the award in Asia/Oceania regional category.
(With PTI inputs)
source: http://www.scroll.in / Scroll.in / Home> Indian Tennis / by Scroll Staff / May 11th, 2020
Indian tennis ace Sania Mirza made a winning return to the professional tennis circuit as she clinched her first tournament after childbirth.
Indian tennis ace Sania Mirza made a winning return to the professional tennis circuit as she clinched her first tournament after childbirth. Partnering Ukranian Nadiia Kichenok, the duo defeated the Chinese pair of S Zhang and S Peng in the women’s doubles finals in the Hobart International 6-4, 6-4 to kick start the year on a triumphant note.
Sania and Kichenok were hardly troubled in the summit clash, as they took the game without breaking into much of a sweat. The Indian now gears up for the Australian Open, where she will team up with Rohan Bopanna in the mixed doubles category. She was expected to play the Grand Slam with American Rajeev Ram, who has, since, pulled out of the tournament.
WTA
✔@WTA
Straight sets win
Nadiia Kichenok and @MirzaSania are your @HobartTennis Doubles Champions after defeating Peng/Zhang, 6-4, 6-4!
This would also be the first time that Mirza and Bopanna would be playing mixed doubles together since they teamed up in the Rio Olympics 2016, where they had finished fourth.
Mirza, who had emerged as an inspiration to young girls in India when she forayed into the competitive world of tennis and started returning with impressive results that even saw her clinch the world number 1 ranking in the doubles circuit, had taken a break when she was at the peak of her career to have a child. Her son Izhaan was born to Mirza and Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Malik in 2018, after which the tennis star spent another year getting fit to return to the professional world.
Her fitness regime, her inspiring videos on Instagram, where she is committed to losing weight and not getting bogged down, have been a hit, and with this win, Mirza has also sent out another vocal message to the youth in India. She stands as an icon of strength, one who has not been afraid to take on the naysayers, proving them wrong with results on the field.
source: http://www.thebridge.in / The Bridge / Home> News / by Sarah Waris / January 18th, 2020
Sania is an aggressive player with one of the biggest forehands in the game
The stupendous success of tennis duo Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis in 2015 has helped them attain the title of 2015 Women’s Doubles World Champions
Sania was born in Mumbai but has lived in Hyderabad for much of her life
Sania Mirza is a path-breaking athlete who almost single-handedly put Indian women’s tennis on the global map. She is the first and so far the only Indian female player to have won a Grand Slam title in any format, and is also the only player to have broken into the top 30 of the WTA singles rankings. Sania’s doubles partnership with Martina Hingis is widely celebrated for its style and success. In 2015 and 2016, Sania and Hingis were the best doubles players on the planet, winning three Slams and two WTA Finals titles. Today, Sania is a sporting and socio-cultural icon in India, whose stature rivals that of the top cricketers in the country.
Sania Mirza Early Life
Sania is an aggressive player with one of the biggest forehands in the game. She can dictate any rally by powering her forehand into the corners and is capable of hitting winners off that wing even from defensive positions. Sania’s forehand was one of the main reasons why she could challenge the top players in singles at the start of her career. While she had a few weaknesses in her game, her forehand was so unique that it regularly featured in the ‘best forehands in the game’ lists. Sania’s backhand is fairly efficient, but her serve is attackable and inconsistent. Her movement is not the greatest either, which hampers her during long rallies and long matches. Sania started out as an aggressive baseliner but started approaching the net a lot more as her focus shifted to doubles. Her volleys have improved over time, and during her partnership with Hingis, she occasionally matched the Swiss’ finesse at the net.
Sania Mirza’s Personal Life
Sania was born in Mumbai but has lived in Hyderabad for much of her life. She started playing tennis at the age of six, and her father Imran Mirza has been her primary coach ever since. Sania married Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Malik in April 2010. In April 2018, the couple announced that they were pregnant with their first child, which put Sania’s tennis career on hold. Sania’s popularity with the Indian masses has earned her a number of endorsement deals, and she has also taken up modelling on some occasions.
Sania Mirza Stats
The stupendous success of tennis duo Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis in 2015 has helped them attain the title of 2015 Women’s Doubles World Champions. Conferred upon the two tennis stars by the International Tennis Federation (ITF), this title has brought the two women, tennis players, closer to each other. Quite contented with the award received from the ITF, Sania Mirza seeks to become an inspiration to all female tennis aspirants in India. Both, Sania and Martina have played together to win their last 22 matches, beginning from the US Open to wins recorded in Asia at Wuhan, Guangzhou, Beijing and finally the WTA Finals.
source: http://www.republicworld.com / Republic TV / Home> Sports News> Tennis News / by Asmita Shukla / Mumbai – September 18th, 2019
