'I think somewhere in the transition of maybe from the juniors to the seniors, and then that senior bracket of going from like that 300 to 200 to 100 to 50 is where we get lost for various reasons.'
Key Points
- Sania Mirza believes India's tennis system is 'still not great', leading to talent being lost during the transition from junior to senior levels.
- Despite abundant talent, Indian players struggle to break into the top 100-50 rankings due to various systemic issues.
- Mirza runs 'The Next Set' initiative to support top Indian women's tennis players with coaches, physios, and mentorship, aiming to alleviate pressure.
- She emphasises her role at 'The Next Set' as mentorship, focusing on the mental aspect and sharing experiences rather than direct coaching.
Tennis icon Sania Mirza believes that the system for the sport in India is 'still not great' and that is why despite having plenty of talent at the junior level, the country loses it while transitioning across various levels of the sport.
On being asked when India will produce the 'Next Sania Mirza', the tennis great told ANI: "I wish I had a crystal ball to answer this question. And for the amount of times I have been asked this question, I would be a very rich person by now."
"But unfortunately, I do not have the answer to that. I have been asked this question for over 20 years now, maybe. We do have a lot of talent. I am not going to take that away. I feel like we do. I think somewhere in the transition of maybe from the juniors to the seniors, and then that senior bracket of going from like that 300 to 200 to 100 to 50 is where we get lost for various reasons."
Addressing Systemic Challenges
"We have got a couple of good young kids, those 14, 15, 17-year-olds, Gen Z, such as Maaya (Maaya Rajeshwaran Revathi). These are the future of our country and our tennis. I am hoping one of them could (be the next Sania Mirza).
"I myself run an initiative called The Next Set, which helps top eight Indian women's tennis players in the country by providing them coaches, physios etc. At the end of the day, we still need to accept that the system behind tennis is still not great. So, you know, it is hard to manage everything on your own, so we are trying to take some pressure off," she added.
Notably, earlier this year, Indian women's players failed to make it to the playoffs of the Billie Jean King Cup 2026. They finished third in the Asia-Oceania Group I standings with three wins and two losses.
Mentorship and Future Hopes
She describes her role at 'The Next Set' as more of a mentorship role rather than coaching.
"I would not call it coaching per se. I am always there to help. All the girls have my number. They reach out to me from time to time. I work with the girls who are a part of the program, and it is more of a mentorship role. We have got coaches, we have got a team of physios, trainers etc in place. My role is about helping girls deal with mental side of things and sharing my experiences," she added.
Sania also revealed that her son Izhaan, also plays tennis.
"He does play tennis, he plays both football and tennis," she said.
