News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Sania Mirza, India’s most successful female tennis player, has revealed that she is in discussions over a Bollywood movie based on her life following the publication of her autobiography, Aces Against Odds, last year.

“There are some talks going on, but there’s nothing concrete right now,” the 30-year-old told Al Jazeera in an interview. “I’m a private person, so it is a difficult ask of me to open up completely.”

The 41-time WTA doubles champion also said she was aiming to return to the top of the WTA doubles rankings, a position she last held in at the start of 2017.

“We’re trying to win every tournament, whether it’s a Grand Slam or a regular tournament,” she said. “It would be great to get back to number one in the world, but I was there for almost two years. I feel like I just want to keep working hard and playing as long as I enjoy the pressure of competing.”

Mirza, who won the Brisbane International this year with WTA World No.1 Bethanie Mattek-Sands, also has six Grand Slam doubles titles to her name. She won the Australian Open last year to go with her 2015 victories at Wimbledon and the US Open, while in mixed doubles she won the Australian Open in 2009, the French Open in 2012 and the US Open in 2014.

Mirza, whose husband is Pakistan international cricketer Shoaib Malik, also spoke about the impact Bollywood can have in giving other sports exposure in a country obsessed with her husband’s game.

“We try to act like we are a sporting nation two months before the Olympics, Asian Games or Commonwealth Games. Until then, nobody really cares. We need to remember that we have champions outside of cricket, as well.

“Most sports don’t get the kind of support, help or viewership that is given to cricket. But because of movies, the whole country realises who these people are. Bollywood is probably the biggest industry that we have. It’s one way to reach out to the masses and, actually, celebrate.”

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