Victory on Comeback! Sania Mirza-Nadiia Kichenok Win Hobart Intl

Sania Mirza wins her first tournament in her comeback. She and Nadiia Kichenok have won the Hobart international.

Sania Mirza and partner Nadiia Kichenok have won the Hobart International.

(Photo: IANS)

• Sania Mirza and Nadiia Kichenok defeated second seeds Peng Shuai and Zhang Shuai 6-4, 6-4 to win the Hobart International.
  
• Sania was playing her first tournament since 2017.

Indian tennis star Sania Mirza has marked her comeback to tennis after two years with a women’s doubles title at the Hobart International.

Paired with Nadiia Kichenok, the unseeded duo beat China’s Peng Shuai and Zhang Shuai.

Sania and Kichenok beat the second seeds 6-4, 6-4 in a contest that lasted one hour and 21 minutes.

‘This is what happens when you don’t expect anything out of a tournament. I think it teaches us to not put any pressure on ourself. I just came out here to try to get some matches in before getting into Melbourne and I just want to say I couldn’t have asked for a better comeback.’

Sania Mirza

Playing her first tournament after giving birth to son Izhaan, this is the 33-year-old’s 42nd WTA doubles title and first since the Brisbane International trophy in 2017 with American partner Bethanie Mattek-Sands.

Sania did not compete on the WTA circuit in the entire 2018 and 2019 seasons.

‘Coach of the Week goes to my son, he’s sleeping right now though. It’s extremely special for me to be here with my baby. I never thought I’d be competing at the very best level against the very best teams in the world so I felt extremely grateful.’

Sania Mirza

Sania and Nadiia began by breaking the Chinese players in the very first game of the match but only to drop serve in the next.

The two pairs played close games towards the end and at 4-4, 40-all, Sania and Nadiia got the crucial break, earning the opportunity to serve out the set.

There was no twist in 10th game with Sania and Nadiia comfortably pocketing the first set.

The second set could not have started better for them as they broke the Chinese rivals to take early lead and consolidated the break with an easy hold.

The game of the Chinese was falling apart as they dropped serve again in the third but broke back immediately to repair some damage.

Sania and Nadiia were now feeling the heat at 0-30 in the sixth game but Peng and Zhang let them hold serve for a 4-2 lead. The Chinese though kept fighting and made it 4-4 with another break in the eighth game.

The Indo-Ukraine team raised its game when it mattered as it broke Peng and Zhang for one final time in the ninth and served out the match in the next game.

Sania and Nadiia split USD 13580 as prize money and eared 280 ranking points each for their winning effort.