Sania Mirza, Rohan Bopanna lose Australian Open mixed doubles title
1 min read . Updated: 27 Jan 2023, 09:18 AM IST
PremiumSania Mirza will retire in February following a competition in Dubai.
In Sania Mirza's final match at a Grand Slam competition before her retirement, the Brazilian team of Luisa Stefani and Rafael Matos defeated her along with Rohan Bopanna 7-6 (2), 6-2 on January 27 to win the Australian Open mixed doubles title.
Sania will retire in February following a competition in Dubai. She has won six Grand Slam doubles titles, including the 2009 Australian Open and three in mixed.
In the tiebreaker, the Brazilian team were up 3-0 before Mirza and Bopanna battled back to equalise the score at 3-2, but it would be their final point. They failed to hit two consecutive overheads, including Mirza's attempt at the net on set point.
In the fourth game of the second set, Stefani and Matos broke Mirza's serve to take the lead 3-1. The break point came after a protracted exchange between the teams. With seven victories at the United Cup and at Melbourne Park, Stefani and Matos are unbeaten as a team.
Also Read: ‘Game. Set. Celebrate’: Sania Mirza shares ‘life update’ ahead of Australian Open
Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna advanced to the Australian Open mixed doubles final on January 24, giving her the opportunity to capture her seventh major championship. In the quarterfinal that lasted an hour and 52 minutes, the unseeded Indian pair defeated third seeds Desirae Krawczyk and Neal Skupski 7-6(5) 6-7(5) 10-6.
"I'm not a crier but I'm almost there right now, I feel the love for the last 18 years I have been coming here. It feels like home for me, I have a family here, I eat at home and I have so many Indians supporting me," Sania earlier said.
Sania has won six Grand Slam tournaments, three of which were in mixed doubles with India’s Mahesh Bhupathi (2009 Australian Open, 2012 French Open) and with Bruno Soares of Brazil (2014 US Open).
The three women's doubles championships (The 2015 Wimbledon, 2015 US Open and 2016 Australian Open) were won with tennis legend Martina Hingis.
(With agency inputs)
