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Sania Mirza continues to inspire her millions of fans after notching up her second consecutive win at the Hobart International 2020 after coming back from a 27-month sabbatical. The smoothness in her movement and the easy power in her shots absolutely do not give an impression that her last tournament before this week was the China Open in October 2017.
Things have changed a lot in her life since that tournament. The 33-year-old is now a doting mother to 1-year-old son, Izhaan Mirza Malik. But one thing that has remained unchanged is her passion for her sport.
The hunger is still there as is the urge to pursue excellence. The long break could not dim the fire in her which took her to six Grand Slam titles and the World No. 1 ranking in women's doubles.
Mirza proved that yet again with a fighting win. In partnership with Ukraine's Nadiia Kichenok, she recorded a 6-2, 4-6, 10-4 win over the American pair of Vania King and Christina McHale in the quarter-finals. Considering that King is a two-time Grand Slam champion, they were no easy opponents. Besides, the Americans had even accounted for the fourth seeds Georgina Garcia Perez and Sara Sorribes Tormo.
The Indian-Ukrainian combine made a strong start to the match, breaking their opponents twice. But King and McHale refused to bow out so quickly and made it a fight. When Mirza and Kichenok failed to convert any of the four break points they got in the second set, King and McHale made use of that opportunity to break their opponents just once and take the match to a decider.
Mirza and Kichenok were once again able to find their rhythm and race away to the victory.
Up next for them is the pair of Marie Bouzkova and Tamara Zidansek, who battled hard against Kateryna Bondarenko and Sharon Fichman to grab a 6-3, 3-6, 10-4 win. With both the pairs having had to go the extra mile, it will be a test of the fitness and stamina of the two teams in the semi-finals.
Here's all you need to know about Hobart International 2020
Tournament: Hobart International 2020
Category: WTA International
City: Hobart, Australia
Prize money: $275,000
Match schedule: Mirza/Kichenok vs Bouzkova/Zidansek at 9 AM IST, on 17 January 2020
