Sania Rising

Ever since her breakout performance at the Australian Open in January, Sania Mirza has played well for her second year on tour. She beat US Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova in Dubai, then won her first WTA title in her hometown of Hyderabad, India. She also made history by being the first Indian woman to reach the third round of the Australian Open and the second round of Wimbledon, and to make the main draw of the French Open.

Sania's summer hard court exploits are also nothing to sneeze at: she made the quarterfinals of Cincinnati, and after playing three rounds of qualifying ran into Venus Williams in the second round of Stanford. This week, Sania is playing in California at the Acura Classic and has beaten world #9 Nadia Petrova 6-2,6-1 in the second round. Mirza, (now rising to #59), will next be playing Akiko Morigami, who she last encountered in the Cincinnati quarterfinals.

posted by Noelle De Guzman @ 9:34 AM