That’s the two-in-one glory of India’s latest world champion!

By Rajib Sen

That’s the two-in-one glory of India’s latest world champion

I am extremely proud and overwhelmed with joy,” said Soaib Malik (33), the all-rounder who captained Pakistan in all three forms of cricket and married Sanya Mirza, now 28. “Ït’s a matter of pride for Pakistan as she is my wife…” That sentiment from across the border echoed the applause that resounded across India with the news of Sania’s accomplishment of becoming the world’s No. 1 tennis woman player. It’s an accomplishment to match only that of Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupati in 1999 in the men’s doubles. Earlier, Ramanathan Krishnan had collared the No 3 spot in 1959. No other Indian tennis player has equalled these players – though badminton star Saina Naiwal has.

That’s a huge achievement for someone who got onto the tennis court at the tender age of just six. She was barely an adolescent 16 when she turned professional in 2003. Trained by Roger Anderson and her father, builder Imran with the full support of her mother Naseema, this Hyderabadi, who was born in Mumbai, went on to stamp her name on the tennis courts like no Indian woman had before.

As a junior player, she won 10 singles and 13 doubles titles. Besides winning the 2003 Wimbledon Championships Girls’ Doubles title, as a partner of Alisa Kleybanova, Sania also reached the semifinals of the 2003 French Open Girls’ Doubles with Sanaa Bhambri, and the quarterfinals of the 2002 US Open Girls’ Doubles.

Through a spectacular career, Sania has beaten several better-known international players –including Svetlana Kuznetsova, Vera Zvonareva and Marion Bartoli besides reigning world’s No 1s like Dinara Safina, Victoria Azarenka and, ironically, Martina Hingis. It is the Swiss Martina (now 34) has been Sania’s partner through her final three tournament triumphs that earned the pair the No. 1 women’s doubles ranking – Sania’s second title shortly after earning her own No. 1 ranking as a doubles player.

While she won the No 1 spot by displacing two Italians , Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci who were joint-No. 1s, to become the sole owner of that rank, the Mirza-Hingis combine rose from the No 3 spot at the start of that week to No 1 by replacing Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina of Russia.

“One of our best qualities as a pair is that no matter how we are playing,” Sania commented, “we keep fighting. We’ve had matches where we haven’t played our best, and we still come out winning, and that really helps me. We keep trying and keep believing in our abilities.”

After three straight tournament wins with Martina, she adds: “The last five weeks have been special. For this to happen over three tournaments is pretty amazing. Martina helped me in some very tough moments and it helps that she’s been there and done that so many times. She’s a great champion.”

At her young age, Sania has cracked a number of national records: Besides being the highest ranked women’s singles Indian player in 2007 when a wrist injury took her out of singles contention, her career earnings have exceeded four million dollars, winning a pro-level title as well as three major mixed doubles titles: the 2009 Australian Open, 2012 French Open and 2014 US Open besides qualifying for (and ultimately winning) the WTA Finals in 2014.

Add this: She is the third Indian woman in the Open Era to feature in and win a round at a Grand Slam tournament (which means reaching at least the last 16, the pre-quarter-finals). In addition, she has won as many as 14 medals (including six Golds) at three major multi-sport events – the Asian Games, Commonwealth Games and Afro-Asian Games.

As India’s playing captain, Sania had the gratification of coming home to lead the country in India’s Asia/Oceania Group II Fed Cup campaign for the team’s fight for promotion into the Asia/Oceania Group I.

Sania’s self-committed load doesn’t end there. She already writing her autobiography, tentatively titled, Against All Odds. Isn’t that typically Sania?