On Wednesday, and I am only assuming here, even as Sania Mirza went about her pre-tournament training ritual in Paris, she must have had one eye on a cricket match in Lahore.
It had been nearly two years since her husband Shoaib Malik had played a one-day international for Pakistan. He made it a memorable comeback, caning a hapless Zimbabwe attack for 112 in just 76 balls to be named man of the match.
One can be pretty sure; husband and wife were on the phone later, sharing in the joy of the moment. The conversation could well have ended, and again I am only assuming here, with Shoaib telling Sania:
“Best of luck in Paris, dear.”
Their careers couldn’t be at further ends of the spectrum. While Shoaib is making attempts to reignite his, Sania has arrived at the French Open as the best doubles player in the world. She is the top seed in both the women’s doubles with Martina Hingis and the mixed doubles with Brazil’s Bruno Soares.
Every child dreams of this when they start playing a sport. Not many people get there, so I am very fortunate.
– Sania after being crowned World Number One
Over the next few days Sania will chase another dream. She has three Grand Slam mixed doubles titles but not a single women’s doubles crown. She did reach the French Open final with Elina Vesnina in 2011, but ended on the wrong side of the result.
This year though, there is an air of expectation after a string of stirring success. Sania has won 28 of her 35 matches, captured four titles and in the legendary Martina Hingis, found the perfect ally to scale the rankings summit.
Martina and I help each other’s games. She is very good around the net and I try to set her up with a lot of groundstrokes. That’s how we really complement each other.
– Sania after their first title in Indian Wells
After a hat trick of titles, the pair encountered a minor stutter on the clay in Europe, losing in the pre-quarters at Stuttgart and the quarters at Madrid. But a run to the final in Rome, although it ended in defeat, is sure to be a timely injection of confidence.
The chasing pack, littered with accomplished clay-courters, won’t make it easy at every step along the way. But Sania Mirza worries very little about difficulties these days.
Who knows, in a few days time, Shoaib may be in the stands. And congratulate her in person.
Won’t that make for a good picture!
(Gaurav Kalra is a senior editor at espncricinfo.com.)
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