Sania Mirza returns to Dubai

DUBAI — Indian tennis sensation Sania Mirza will return to the Dubai Tennis Championships, organisers Dubai Duty Free announced yesterday.

Given a wild card for the 2005 Dubai Women’s Open, Mirza returns to Dubai next month as a true superstar of the game and a genuine contender to take the title.

She not only attracted sell out crowds in Dubai last year, the teenager backed up the expectations by claiming a stunning first round victory over the reigning US Open champion, Svetlana Kuznetsova.

That was just another step to becoming an icon for countless millions of sports-loving Indians, and Sania’s success in Dubai as well as winning her first Sony Ericsson WTA Tour title in her home city of Hyderabad led to her meeting presidents and prime ministers, appearing on the cover of Time magazine and being featured on CNN’s Talk Asia.

“We are absolutely delighted to be welcoming Sania back to Dubai and I’m sure there are many people who will be looking forward to watching this young star in action again,” said Colm McLoughlin, managing director of event owners and organisers Dubai Duty Free.

“The atmosphere in the Dubai Tennis Stadium when Sania was playing last year was unforgettable and she will no doubt draw on that support once again to help her against some of the top players in the world.”

Mirza is sure to cause another frenzy when she returns to compete in the Dubai Tennis Championships 2006. Taking place at the Dubai Tennis Centre from February 20, the $1,000,000 event also features the greatest line-up of stars in the history of the tournament. Mirza will compete against defending champion and world number one Lindsay Davenport, 2004 Wimbledon champion Maria Sharapova, two-time former champion Justine Henin-Hardenne, Serena and Venus Williams and 2004 US Open winner Svetlana Kuznetsova.

Mirza’s talent attracted the interest of Australian legend Tony Roche, who now coaches Roger Federer. In fact, Sania spent time at the Roche residence in December, preparing for the Australian Open in the company of Federer himself. “It was like two hours for me, two hours with Roger, then I was back after two hours. He was actually giving personal attention to both of us,” said Mirza. “We worked on my serve, changed my action a little bit, worked a lot on my volleys, getting some variation in my game.”

Sania has managed to take all the adulation she has received in her stride, although it has sometimes been difficult with constant demands on her time.

“It gets hard sometimes,” she admits, “You know, I'm there, I'm playing tennis. That's what I'm here for. That's what I want to do the best I can for however long I can. I think you need to just go out there and play your game.

“Expectations are not in my control. That's something I have to live with.

“It's amazing, though, the amount of people that are so proud of you when you go back home, the amount of people that come up to you and say, ‘I'm proud to be Indian, you're doing a great job for India.’ It's just amazing that you can bring so many smiles to so many faces.”

Sania will certainly be bringing smiles to her thousands of fans in Dubai when she competes next month against many of the best players in the world.

The Dubai Tennis Championships is owned and organised by Dubai Duty Free and takes place under the patronage of His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

The Dubai Tennis Championships has won a total of 12 ATP/WTA awards. These include the Tournament of the Year award from the WTA in 2001 following the inaugural Dubai Duty Free Women's Open, and the equivalent award from the ATP in 1998, 2003 and 2004 for the Dubai Duty Free Men's Open.