WTA Doha: Sania Mirza returns to doubles action at Qatar Open after missing on the tour for more than a year


WTA Doha: Sania Mirza returns to doubles action at Qatar Open after missing on the tour for more than a year

Sania Mirza

Sania Mirza

Sania Mirza, the pride of Indian women’s tennis will return to action at the WTA Doha Open on Monday. The six time Grandslam doubles champion used her protected ranking to be a part of the main draw at the Qatar Total Open. She will partner 40th-ranked Andreja Klepac of Slovenia.

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The Indian tennis star returned to tennis only in 2020 after a two year long maternity leave. She won her first tournament on return at the Hobart International. However, the pandemic took her season off track. She caught the coronavirus and was ill for quite a while which led her to missing the rest of the 2020 season.

The Indian star to partner with Andreja Klepac of Slovenia

Sania Mirza’s partner for the Doha Open is Andreja Klepac and they will open their campaign against the Ukrainian twins, Lyudmyla and Nadiia Kichenok. The match is expected to start by 20:45 hours IST.

The Ukrainian duo have not played together since the French Open, last year where they were knocked out in the first round itself. Given the experience on Mirza’s side, it is expected the Indo-Slovenian pair will get through the round of 16 encounter in a comfortable fashion and book a quarterfinal berth.

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Given the long season that lays ahead, Sania Mirza would look forward to making a good start to her 2021 campaign. Her biggest goal this season as stated by her is to win a medal at the Tokyo Olympics, which takes place later this year.

Also Read: “All surfaces considered, Novak Djokovic is the best overall tennis player,” believes former World no.1 doubles player Sania Mirza