Sania Mirza may have stepped off the tennis court after announcing her retirement earlier this year, but the sport refused to let her go. The former tennis star is back for the 2023 Wimbledon Championships, albeit as a commentator. While she misses the thrill of competing, she is happy to explore something new in her career.
Before playing at Wimbledon, she made her debut as a commentator at the IPL 2023 tournament earlier this year.
“Being a commentator was a lot of fun. I love doing new things, experiencing and learning new things. For me, my journey as a commentator has been a good learning process (which started) and a lot of fun since cricket has been a big part of my life,” she tells us.
Talking about her life post-retirement, the 36-year-old shares, “I’ve actually been very busy post-retirement, doing multiple things”.
“I don’t miss the training and the hours that go with it, but I do miss the competition. I miss the feeling of walking onto the big courts and winning. I miss it. My life changed and my routine changed in many ways as I tried new things. I’m learning new things with it and the whole process is so different and so similar at the same time. As much as I still try to do things with discipline, it’s something I’ve learned and embraced. It (retirement) hasn’t really hit me yet. Maybe because it was just a few months and I have been very busy since then,” says Mirza, who has won six tennis Grand Slam titles — three in women’s doubles and three in mixed doubles.
She might be busy, but the sports icon makes sure she spends more time with her son Ishaan and makes up for lost years.
“It’s been a 25-year journey, always being on the road, it’s very difficult. At the moment, I also travel a lot, but spending more quality time with my son is something very special, and that’s a deliberate reason to stop playing. I could have spent more time with him. It feels so special to be able to have that relationship with him now,” she says.
Wrapping up, she hopes to see more tennis players from India make their mark globally. “When it comes to the sports field, we are going in the right direction…just like in tennis we still have some way to go and now that I am retired I hope to have more competitors in the Grand Slams again,” she concludes.