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Sania to focus on doubles
Sania Mirza, who recently reached a career-best ranking of No. 7 in the world, has decided to prioritise playing doubles in the hope of making the 2012 London Olympic Games cut.
Sania Mirza, who recently reached a career-best ranking of No. 7 in the world, has decided to prioritise playing doubles in the hope of making the 2012 London Olympic Games cut.
“A decade of professional tennis has taken its toll on my body and the three surgeries in the last four years have not helped, for sure. My body may not be able to cope up with playing both singles and doubles in the future and as this is the Olympic year, where qualifying for the mega event is top priority, I might need to focus on keeping my doubles ranking in the top-10 on June 11, which is the cut-off date for qualification.
“I believe we have a chance of a medal in mixed doubles. Of course, I will continue to play singles as and when I feel confident of my physical condition but doubles will be my priority for now,” Sania said from Shenzhen, China, where she is representing India in the Fed Cup. She and Russian partner Elena Vesnina made it to the semifinals of the Australian Open recently.
Sania is currently ranked No 111 in singles but to make the direct cut for London, she must be ranked 64 or less. The All India Tennis Association had earlier stated that if Sania's singles ranking didn’t fall in the direct entry bracket by the deadline, which is June 21 (rankings as of June 11 will be considered), they would ask the organising committee for a wild card entry.
