The year was 2005 and the tournament was the Australian Open when a girl still in her teens racked up victories against Cindy Watson and Petra Mandula to set up a third round clash with Serena Williams. That teenage sensation was none other than Sania Mirza. However, the contest in the third round was one-sided. Sania succumbed to a straight-sets defeat. But her view was clear, and so was her determination on the prize.

She backed her performance with a win at a WTA event, and the tennis fraternity took note of the youngster. However, it was not until the US Open that year, when, the world took note of India’s strongest contender in Women’s tennis. And, the most important thing that came out of it was Indians began to believe there was more to Tennis than Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes.

Growing up in the media

Ever since Mirza’s early entry to fame with a Wimbledon junior doubles win in 2003. She came under the spotlight from the Indian media. And her every move on and off the court became a subject of interest for them.

She received critics for her dressing, her attitude and what not. But all she cared was what she did on the court and how her racquet responded to the critics. Not long after making it to the US Open 4th round, she even broke into the top 30 women’s singles players in the world. Her peak ranking came in 2007, when she was ranked 27th in the world.

She overcame some of the top names in the sport at the time, with wins over Svetlana Kuznetsova, Nadia Petrova and Martina Hingis.

From shadows to World No. 1

Tennis for long had been perceived a men’s sport in India, and being a woman in men’s sport was not an easy job. But, she fought.

Sania Mirza, over time became a household name among the tennis faithful in the country and became one of the most popular athletes in the world. Her following on social media combine to nearly 18 million people across Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

That is what she has achieved from playing tennis in the past 10 years. However, she was forced to quit playing singles due to an injury sustained in 2010. However, she took the news and put it to good use by limiting herself to playing doubles and what a move that turned out to be. Paired with tennis icon Martina Hingis, Sania was ranked at the top of women’s doubles for nearly a year and a half.

Sania Mirza turns veteran

As she approaches her 30th birthday in November this year, Sania is, in every sense a veteran of the sport. Now, she is named alongside Martina Navratilova, Liezel Huber and Cara Black, who have all held the top spot longer than the Indian star. And, if we are to consider the success of Tennis in India, the men have mostly succeeded after their 30th birthday. For instance, Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi have won most of their trophies during this period.

Her trophies and on-court achievements are not the end of line. She has achieved much more than what can be seen on paper. She has successfully influenced a generation of women athletes; youngsters like Ankita Raina, Prarthana Thombare have probably been able to pick tennis as a career because of what Sania Mirza achieved.

What the future holds for Indian sports or the women in Indian sports is not known, but one thing that can be said is, whatever it holds, will take time and patience.