Sania Mirza has announced that the WTA 1000 in Dubai in February will be her final tournament:
At the Australian Open, the six-time Grand Slam victor will compete against Anna Danilina of Kazakhstan.
Sania Mirza, the former world No. 1 in doubles, said recently that she will be calling it quits at the WTA 1000 competition in Dubai the following month. Mirza had initially intended to hang up her racket after the 2022 season, but after experiencing injury issues in the second half of the season, she changed her mind.
The 36-year-old will make her final Grand Slam debut this month when she competes in women's doubles at the Australian Open with Kazakhstan's Anna Danilina.
US Open owing to an elbow injury the previous year.
She has recently struggled with other physical problems as well, such as a recurring calf condition, but she is adamant about being able to retire from the game on a match court. Since I am the kind of person I am, I prefer to do things on my terms. I therefore don't want an injury to make me leave. She admitted to training to wtatennis.com.
After her final Wimbledon match, in which she just lost out on the mixed doubles final, her father, Imran, told this newspaper that she should retire at the WTA Finals, where she would compete against the finest players in the world, as a proper way to end her career. But that plan was hampered by injuries.
In an age of Indian tennis that did not experience much success outside of the doubles circuit, Mirza was one of the sport's brightest stars. She had a tremendous singles career as well, peaking at World No. 27 before going on to win six Grand Slams and becoming the top doubles player in the world. She made it to the fourth round of the 2005 US Open, making her the last Indian to go to the second week of a major.
At the age of 36 and after experiencing numerous severe injury issues, Mirza's priorities have shifted. "I truly don't have the mental capacity to push myself that far emotionally anymore." She stated, "I became a professional in 2003," according to the WTA. "Priorities change, and right now, my priority is not to always push my body to the edge."
In addition to the academy she founded in Hyderabad, Mirza intends to concentrate on her academies in Dubai, where she has lived for more than ten years. She explained that she had one in Hyderabad and one in Dubai because it's vital to her to share her experiences in the communities she calls home.
The Dubai Tennis Championships, her final professional competition, will begin on February 19.