This story is from June 28, 2016

Sania, Hingis eye more glory at Wimbledon

Starting Wimbledon (2015), Sania and Hingis went unbeaten in Slams until they fell to the unheralded Russian pair of Daria Kasatkina and Alexandra Panova in the third round of the French Open last month.
Sania, Hingis eye more glory at Wimbledon
Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis of Switzerland. (Getty Images)
Key Highlights
  • Important to play ourselves into the tournament: Sania
  • The world No. 1 doubles pro said the last 12 months had been rewarding
  • I'm a rhythm player and I need to practice before I play on grass: Sania
LONDON: Sania Mirza gazed out of the players' restaurant that overlooks SW19's picturesque facility and spotted the falling rain. "Of course," she said, her voice dropping musically, "it's raining, so we must be at Wimbledon."
The world No. 1 doubles pro, back to the scene of her sweetest triumph, said the last 12 months had been rewarding.
"A lot has happened this past year.
I've been No.1 for over a year and we're back to where we won our first Grand Slam title as a team," she said of her partnership with Swiss Martina Hingis. "No matter how many more Slams I win, nothing is going to top the 2015 triumph. Not just because it was my first (women's doubles), but the way we won it and then it set us up for the streak that followed our win at the US Open."
Starting Wimbledon (2015), Sania and Hingis went unbeaten in Slams until they fell to the unheralded Russian pair of Daria Kasatkina and Alexandra Panova in the third round of the French Open last month.
"I feel good, prepared," Sania, who arrived in London in the weekend, said while dismissing the hay fever that has been bothering her this past week.
The 29-year-old, stylishly turned out in a bohemian jacket and fitted bottom, wavy locks falling loosely around her shoulders, noted: "The reason I played the two tournaments leading up to Wimbledon -Birmingham and Eastbourne - was to find my rhythm. I'm a rhythm player and I need to practice before I play on grass. It's not about winning or even how many matches you play, it's about getting that practice in and you know mentally preparing yourself for this whole start-stop affair that is the feature of playing on grass."

SanTina, the top seeds, have drawn the tricky German pairing of Anna-Lena Friedsam and Laura Siegemind in their opening encounter. "You may have played on grass for 20 years, but each time the season begins, you're starting fresh, finding your step again."
Sania said: "It's the most physically demanding of surfaces, in clay and even on hard courts you can get away at times without using your feet too much, managing to steer it with your hands. But on grass you just have to get down to play the ball."
SanTina, who won just one match at Eastbourne coming into The Championships, will find that it's as much a physical exercise as it's a mental one. "I think the first few rounds are crucial, it's important that we play ourselves into the tournament."
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