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The rise of Ankita Raina on the Indian tennis circuit may have been quiet but it has been fairly upward and steady. Based out of Pune, Ankita Raina is currently the highest ranked player in both singles as well as doubles.
With a decent share of trophies and medals piled up in her cabinet, the 28-year-old has now booked herself a berth at the upcoming Tokyo Olympics.
Gearing up to partner Sania Mirza, a 6-time Grand Slam champion and a 3-time Olympian, Ankita Raina will be making her debut at the Games. Mirza, who is arguably the best Indian female tennis player the country has ever produced, is looking to get closer to an elusive Olympic medal.
Competing in what will be her fourth successive Olympics, Sania Mirza's strategic partnership with Ankita Raina is expected to prove fruitful.
There was some confusion earlier as to who the former doubles World No. 1 would select as her partner before Ankita Raina was confirmed as her choice. With an injury-protected ranking of World No. 9, Sania Mirza had the freedom to choose any player within the top-300 to play alongside her.
Ranked at World No. 95 in doubles, Ankita Raina was an obvious option for Mirza. Even though the Mirza-Raina duo have not played a lot together, they did hit the practice courts in Dubai before the 2021 Fed Cup. Both being inspired by each other, this pairing will be one to look forward to at the Olympics.
The rise of Ankita Raina - a star in the making
With roots in Kashmir, the 2016 Asian Games gold medalist in women's singles and mixed doubles, Ankita Raina hails from Ahmedabad. Taking to tennis at the tender age of five after watching her brother Ankur play the sport, Raina showed traits of excellence from the get-go.
With an incredibly supportive family by her side and her coach Hemant Bendrey, Raina soon grew to be a promising player on the tour. Having put in hard work and followed a disciplined regime, Raina's path to glory has seen her collect 11 ITF titles so far.
Ankita Raina also holds a WTA title as well as another WTA 125k title. Raina's crowning moment of glory came during the 2018 Asian Games where she memorably claimed the bronze medal.
Quite the spirited player, Ankita Raina has even taken down the likes of 2011 US champion Samantha Stosur, former World No. 5 Sara Errani and Sabine Lisicki, the 2013 Wimbledon finalist. As far as recent Indian tennis goes, Ankita Raina's presence on the circuit has been quite exceptional.
Ankita Raina might also feature in the women's singles
The chances of Ankita Raina earning a place to fight it out in the women's singles is also looming large. Although she is currently ranked World No. 183 on the WTA singles list, Ankita Raina's 2018 Asian Games bronze medal might come in handy here.
After Sania Mirza, Ankita Raina became the second Indian female to win a medal in the singles category at the Asian Games. The Ahmedabad girl won hearts with bronze after losing a hard-fought semi-final to China's Zhang Shuai 4-6, 7-6.
As per the Olympic rules, a wildcard is granted to the Asian Games gold medalist which throws open the chance of Raina also receiving a wildcard.
While the confirmed list of eligible players to represent the country is due to be out on June 14, Ankita Raina, being the bronze medalist, can nurture hope. However, Raina's entry into the Games would also mean that the Chinese duo of Wang Qiang (gold medalist) and Zhang Shuai (silver medalist) would also get a ticket to the Olympics.
