Abu Dhabi Open 2023 | Sania Mirza eliminated in first round
On Monday, Sania Mirza of India and Bethanie Mattek-Sands of the United States were eliminated from the Abu Dhabi Open 2023 WTA 500 tennis competition. In the opening round, Kirsten Flipkens and Laura Siegemund of Belgium defeated Sania Mirza and Bethanie Mattek-Sands by a score of 3-6, 4-6.
Sania Mirza, a six-time Grand Slam champion, is one step closer to retiring as a result of the setback. After the Dubai Tennis Championships, which begin on February 27, the Indian tennis star has declared her retirement from the game.
Sania Mirza and Mattek-Sands were handed a setback in the second game of the first set while competing on the hard courts at the Zayed Sports City International Tennis Centre. In the very next game, the Indo-American team fought back to break Flipkens and Siegemund's serve.
The European team soon seized the lead, though, as Sania and Sands were broken once more in the sixth game, and they continued to play hard to take the first set. Both sides engaged in a fierce struggle for dominance in the second set. The two teams exchanged three break opportunities, and the score was tied at four apiece until Sania and Sands botched their serve in the crucial ninth game.
Kirsten Flipkens and Laura Siegemund maintained their composure to win the match in just over an hour by serving for it in the tenth game.