Elena Vesnina ends partnership with Sania for a chance at Olympic glory

India’s top tennis star and Olympic medal prospect Sania Mirza will not combine with regular partner Elena Vesnina over the next few months on the doubles tour.

Mirza will play next week’s Premier event in Stuttgart with Italian Flavia Pennetta as Vesnina has decided to partner with a fellow Russian with an eye towards the upcoming Olympic Games in London.

Sania and Elena have been a formidable dooubles team in the last 15 months, winning several WTA titles and reaching the finals of the French Open last June.

Sania, currently ranked 9th in doubles, need to maintain her top 10 ranking to get an automcatic qualification for the London Games in doubles.

Sania’s father also revealed that the Indian is keen to partner with American Bethanie Mattek-Sands in the long run. Sania will play with Anastasia Rodionova in Estoril and at Madrid Masters.

“Vesnina has decided to partner Ekaterina Makarova with an eye on the Olympics. Sania’s idea is to partner Bethanie Mattek-Sands in the long run. They have played together before and have a good rapport. They even reached the US Open quarters earlier. But Bethanie is coming off an injury so she is not available to play doubles immediately. Because of that Sania has decided to start the clay season with Flavia Pennetta and then play with Anastasia Rodionova,” Imran Mirza, Sania’s father and coach on the tour, told a leading Indian newspaper.