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[Blwe_torch]

Sania Mirza plans to quit tennis after marriage
PTI, 14 January 2010, 02:50pm IST

NEW DELHI: India's most successful female tennis player Sania Mirza, on Thursday, revealed that she will hang up her racquet after getting married.

Sania, who got engaged to childhood friend Sohrab Mirza in July 2009, did not elaborate when she plans to marry but said she will bid adieu to the game after tying the nuptial knot.

"As of now, I don't intend to play professionally after marriage but that is still some time away," Sania said.

Before getting engaged to the Indian tennis diva, Sohrab had said that Sania will have complete freedom in making her career decisions.

"She has my complete support and backing in whatever she wishes. It is completely her decision for how long she wishes to play," Sohrab had said.

So when asked if it was purely her decision to quit the game after marriage, Sania's father Imran Mirza said, "It's her decision for now. If later she decides to play after marriage, its her choice."

Ever since turning pro in 2003, Sania has been the face of Indian tennis on the WTA circuit.

She also became India's first female Grand Slam winner when she won the Australian Open mixed doubles title with compatriot Mahesh Bhupathi last year.

Sania's start to the 2010 season though was far from impressive as she lost in the second round of the Auckland event, followed by a first round defeat at the Hobart but the Hyderabadi is hardly perturbed.

"I think after competing for seven years as a professional and ranked in the singles top-100 for five years, I've reached a stage in my career where my performance cannot be judged on the basis of few tournaments," she said.

"Wins and losses are part of the game and in a truly global sport like tennis where more than 220 countries compete seriously, except for the top-10 players, nobody wins too consistently," Sania added.

All that the Indian wants now is to stay away from injuries in the new season. Her wrist injury in 2008 had forced her to spend half the year out of court.

"I expect to continue to work hard, try my very best and leave the rest to God. I would like to stay away from any serious injuries during 2010," she said.

Talking about the year gone by, Sania says she is happy with the way she performed in 2009 although there were only a few moments of glory for her.

Apart from the triumph at the Australian Open which was followed by the final appearance in Pattaya and a win over Shahar Peer were the only high points of Sania's stay on the tour, last season.

However, the Indian said that the results achieved were satisfactory.

"As a matter of fact, I did play the semi-finals in singles in Birmingham and Osaka and won an ITF title in USA besides making the final of a $100,000 event in Canada.

"I had singles wins over players like Bartoli and Shahar Peer. Apart from this, I won a doubles title in Ponte Vedra Beach.

"I finished at a singles ranking of 57 after having dropped to the 120's following my wrist injury. I also had to skip several weeks due to the niggling pain. So, under the circumstances, I'm reasonably happy with my performance," she said.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/tennis/top-stories/Sania-Mirza-plans-to-quit-tennis-after-marriage/articleshow/5444809.cms

[keep-it-cool]

loses 4-6, 2-6 in the first round of the Australian open

[sudzz]

loses 4-6, 2-6 in the first round of the Australian open

Was anything else expected was she not playing someone ranked way higher?

[dhruvdeepak]

man ..... you know this DG is getting too predictable when you can forecast someone's post days in advance.

cmon, at least if you're hating on someone for a particular reason, be open about it. why worry about their performances on the court? it's really annoying. she's not going to win you any grand slams, she said some nonsense in the past. yes its fair to hate on her for who she is and what she said, but she never promised you a grand slam.

that too she won a frikkin mixed doubles slam last year. that is called over-delivering!

why cant people be like me? when i say i hate iain o brien, i dont hate him for his performances and i never bring them into it. i just open a thread with a clear mission statement "I Hate Iain O'Brien" and then i proceed to hate on his blog entries and press quotes.

so much so, that i force him to retire.

clearly my way is much more effective.

[dextrous]

im not sure where the question of hating sania arises. in the next fifty years, we'd be lucky to have another woman in the top 100, leave alone top 30. that's quite an achievement for an indian--not on a global scale, but nationally, she has achieved what nobody ever had before.

[Blwe_torch]

I remain a Sania fan.........remember the thread with all Sania photos!

[sudzz]

man ..... you know this DG is getting too predictable when you can forecast someone's post days in advance.

cmon, at least if you're hating on someone for a particular reason, be open about it. why worry about their performances on the court? it's really annoying. she's not going to win you any grand slams, she said some nonsense in the past. yes its fair to hate on her for who she is and what she said, but she never promised you a grand slam.

that too she won a frikkin mixed doubles slam last year. that is called over-delivering!

why cant people be like me? when i say i hate iain o brien, i dont hate him for his performances and i never bring them into it. i just open a thread with a clear mission statement "I Hate Iain O'Brien" and then i proceed to hate on his blog entries and press quotes.

so much so, that i force him to retire.

clearly my way is much more effective.

Dude I will hate anyone that puts herself or himself before the team and does not support the own team that she/he is playing in... I will also hate anyone that puts her/his feet on the national flag irrespective of their so called achievements.

Yeah so she reached the top 30 in the world in a sport where anything beyond top 10-15 is crap anyway.

You can be happy in your ways I will be in mine...

[WicketView]

Dude I will hate anyone that puts herself or himself before the team and does not support the own team that she/he is playing in... I will also hate anyone that puts her/his feet on the national flag irrespective of their so called achievements.

Yeah so she reached the top 30 in the world in a sport where anything beyond top 10-15 is crap anyway.

You can be happy in your ways I will be in mine...

Did that really happen?

[keep-it-cool]

Dude I will hate anyone that puts herself or himself before the team and does not support the own team that she/he is playing in... I will also hate anyone that puts her/his feet on the national flag irrespective of their so called achievements.

Yeah so she reached the top 30 in the world in a sport where anything beyond top 10-15 is crap anyway.

You can be happy in your ways I will be in mine...

Did that really happen?

What apparently happened was that in between games (or when she was watching a match, I dont remember exactly), she put her legs up on a stool or something - and there was an Indian flag alongside. Someone clicked that and it became a big issue. This is what I remember ...you'll probably find the specifics if you google.

[dhruvdeepak]

Dude I will hate anyone that puts herself or himself before the team and does not support the own team that she/he is playing in... I will also hate anyone that puts her/his feet on the national flag irrespective of their so called achievements.

Yeah so she reached the top 30 in the world in a sport where anything beyond top 10-15 is crap anyway.

You can be happy in your ways I will be in mine...

Did that really happen?

What apparently happened was that in between games (or when she was watching a match, I dont remember exactly), she put her legs up on a stool or something - and there was an Indian flag alongside. Someone clicked that and it became a big issue. This is what I remember ...you'll probably find the specifics if you google.

this is like sachin cutting the indian tricolor cake.
ridiculous

[teamindia]

She didn't step on the flag. She was just resting her feet on the bench there happened to be flag there. More like a cameraman's trick.

[Blwe_torch]

photography gimmick.
cheats and frauds normally do such online gimmicks...............in this case, dragging the player ( who has probably done more for India's esteem than the photographer himself) in turmoil.

[keep-it-cool]

Dude I will hate anyone that puts herself or himself before the team and does not support the own team that she/he is playing in... I will also hate anyone that puts her/his feet on the national flag irrespective of their so called achievements.

Yeah so she reached the top 30 in the world in a sport where anything beyond top 10-15 is crap anyway.

You can be happy in your ways I will be in mine...

Did that really happen?

What apparently happened was that in between games (or when she was watching a match, I dont remember exactly), she put her legs up on a stool or something - and there was an Indian flag alongside. Someone clicked that and it became a big issue. This is what I remember ...you'll probably find the specifics if you google.

this is like sachin cutting the indian tricolor cake.
ridiculous

agree

[dextrous]

there are also indian players who put beer and wine next to the indian flag during functions...should we banish them also!

[WicketView]

Dude I will hate anyone that puts herself or himself before the team and does not support the own team that she/he is playing in... I will also hate anyone that puts her/his feet on the national flag irrespective of their so called achievements.

Yeah so she reached the top 30 in the world in a sport where anything beyond top 10-15 is crap anyway.

You can be happy in your ways I will be in mine...

Did that really happen?

What apparently happened was that in between games (or when she was watching a match, I dont remember exactly), she put her legs up on a stool or something - and there was an Indian flag alongside. Someone clicked that and it became a big issue. This is what I remember ...you'll probably find the specifics if you google.

Yes, I saw the photographs. And to the best of my understanding, those are not  "put her feet on the national flag". And there is a really big difference between what you say (and I was aware of) and this description. 

[Blwe_torch]

Sania Mirza's engagement called off
Prajwal Hegde, TNN, 28 January 2010, 12:33am IST

BANGALORE: Sania Mirza hasn't had the best of starts to the 2010 season - on and off court. A broken service game is one thing, but a broken engagement or a broken heart, is quite another.

Earlier in the week, the 23-year-old's father Imran, who coaches Sania and manages her career, called off his daughter's engagement to Mohammed Sohrab Mirza. Sania was formally engaged to the fellow Hyderabadi and longtime friend, now studying business in the United Kingdom, at a luxury hotel near her home last July.

The Indian star categorically refused to get into the why and what of the matter, but confirmed her engagement was off. "We were friends for half a decade, but found ourselves incompatible during our engagement period. I wish Sohrab the best in life," she said.

Even before the two got engaged, questions were doing the rounds about whether Mohammed could cope with the demands of being life-partner to a widely-travelled, hugely-popular athlete. Sania, who has been struggling with the differences for the last couple of months, hasn't taken the break-up well as her results on court show. However, she's doing what she always does at a time of crisis - surround herself with family and friends.

As it stands, Sania will have to turn her focus to the courts, and in time might find comfort there. She flies out to Kuala Lumpur late on Friday, where she leads India's challenge in the Fed Cup Asia Oceania Group II competition, starting February 2.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/tennis/top-stories/Sania-Mirzas-engagement-called-off/articleshow/5506727.cms