“For me, this has been an unbelievable journey and the kind of stuff that dreams are made of!"
Indian tennis star Sania Mirza finishes 2016 as the World No 1 women’s doubles player for the second consecutive year.
Despite losing in the women’s doubles semi-finals at the 2016 WTA finals in Singapore, Mirza holds her top spot.
Bethanie Mattek-Sands had a chance to overtake Sania in the rankings, but she and partner Lucie Safarova (CZE) lost in the WTA final.
The 29-year-old is the first player from India to acquire the numero uno spot since April 2016. The Hyderabadi has claimed eight doubles titles this season.
Most of Sania’s titles came before she parted ways with Swiss partner Martina Hingis in July 2016.
Earlier in the year, the former Grand Slam duo famously known as Santina won the Australian Open women’s doubles championship. Later on they went onto clinch the Italian Open tournament on clay.
Since the split with Hingis, Sania has found a new partner in Barbora Strycova from the Czech Republic.
The Indo-Czech pair won the Cincinnati Masters this season against Hingis and Coco Wandeweghe from the USA.
Talking to the media about her accomplishments, Sania says:
“For me, this has been an unbelievable journey and the kind of stuff that dreams are made of! I’ve always felt that reaching the pinnacle in any sphere of activity is a huge achievement but staying there for a prolonged period is even more difficult than getting there for the first time.”
“The fact that only 3 legends of the women’s game – Navratilova, Black and Huber – have had a longer consecutive stint at the top in the history of women’s doubles tennis makes it even more satisfying for me.”
Sania has been successful in retaining the top ranking spot in the women’s doubles for over 80 weeks. She has proven that by having a strong mental mindset, dreams can come true.
Her amazing historical feat means that she is only the sixth player in women’s doubles to rank No 1 in the world for the entire calendar year.
The big question is will Sania and Hingis team up again? Well, Mirza may decide to continue her partnership with Strycova.
Either way, Sania Mirza hopes to continue her rich form going into next season.
Loading ...