Sania Mirza: Trailblazer, big winner like no other

While PT Usha set the tracks on fire during her heydays, it is Sania Mirza who —much later—instilled in the predominantly conservative Indian woman the hope and desire of making it big in the sporting arena. The average Indian woman saw lawn tennis as a sport more possible to excel in than a track event.

More and more girls took up the racket sport, making Hyderabadi a household name. Self-belief can do wonders, and that is evident in the present sporting scenario of the country. No longer is the presence of desi women in an Indian contingent of an international sporting event a mere formality. She has grown into a force to reckon with, leading the aspirations of the entire country, and delivering.

No longer does the country have to console itself with “participation is as important as winning” in reference to performance of the “fairer sex”. The share of prizes won by Indian women is growing by the year, making her the mightier sex. That she is commanding the respect and price equivalent to her male counterpart came through nice and clear in the spoils she landed in the recent Women’s Premier League auction.

Sania’s contribution to the journey is paying her rich dividends in cricket too, what with the popular Royal Challengers Bangalore picking her as its mentor. That the charismatic lady is adept at the gentleman’s game is another matter. It is safe to bet that Sania will put those cricketing skills to good use and produce results for the good of a team that has plenty of passionate supporters, thanks to the strong fan following of the men’s team.

Having made a big name for herself early in her career made keeping it a big challenge. Winning the difficult contest meant staying up there among the best in the world for an extended period of time. People may also remember flashes in the pans, but it takes longevity, especially for today’s generation with a fleeting memory span, to cement one’s place in history.

And, the athletic sportswoman was up to it. She won her first medal, a bronze, in the mixed doubles’ event at the 2002 Asian Games in Busan, partnering Leander Paes. Sania announced her imposing arrival when she picked up four gold medals at the 2003 Afro-Asian Games in Hyderabad. She went from strength to strength in the next 10 years, ranked as she was by the Women’s Tennis Association as the Indian No 1 in singles from 2003 until her retirement from singles in 2013.

Over the next decade, she concentrated on the doubles and mixed doubles events with equal success. En route, she reaped six major titles, three each in the two team events, to etch her name among the most successful Indian sports personalities. Her personal journey during the physically taxing sporting voyage has not been a rosy one all along.

The country’s sporting icon has had her share of emotional impediments. From injuries not unexpected in a strenuous field that sports is to fatwas being declared against her, Sania braved them all. In the process, proving that religion doesn’t necessarily limit an individual. She also made little of the cross-border animosity nationals tend to extend to personal lives, and Shoaib Malik knows that best.