After an unexpected first-round loss in her women’s doubles match at the Dubai Open, Indian tennis player Sania Mirza announced her retirement from the sport.
Mirza and Madison Keys of the United States were defeated by Veronika Kudermetova and Liudmila Samsonova of Russia in straight sets (6-4, 6-0). After making her retirement plans public earlier this month, the 36-year-old from Hyderabad, India, was competing in the final tournament of her impressive career. In the mixed doubles division of the Australian Open last month, Mirza and her countryman Rohan Bopanna finished in second place.
With her rating of 28 in the most recent Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) rankings, the former world champion in women’s doubles raised doubts in the minds of her supporters regarding her intended retirement.
“Staying at this level [of tennis] is draining emotionally, mentally, and physically. In an interview with Al Jazeera earlier this month, Mirza said, “I don’t have the motivation to push all the way to sustain this level. Throughout the course of a 20-year professional tennis career, Mirza won 43 major titles and six Grand Slam championships. She is the only Indian woman to hold the top spot in the doubles rankings and to achieve a career-high singles rating of 27.
Mirza took more than a year off while she was expecting her son, and she started training again four months after he was born. The former world number one has stated that she would consider her career a success if she helped moms continue following their interests after childbirth.
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Since Mirza announced her retirement, several South Asian female athletes have commended her for opening the door for women to participate in professional sports. In particular for young girls from the subcontinent, she remarked, “It’s been extremely lovely to know that I have been able to make a difference in their lives.”
