Hobart International: Sania Mirza enters women’s doubles semifinals

Indian tennis ace Sania Mirza's comeback from maternityleave continued to be a success as she entered the women's doubles semifinalsof the Hobart International with Ukrainian partner Nadiia Kichenok here onThursday.

Sania and Kichenok defeated the American duo of Vania Kingand Christina McHale 6-2 4-6 10-4 in a contest that lasted one hour and 24minutes. The fifth-seeded Indo-Ukrainian combination will now lock horns withthe Slovenian-Czech pair of Tamara Zidansek and Marie Bouzkova.

Zidansek and Bouzkova got the better of Canada's SharonFichman and Ukraine's Kateryna Bondarenko 6-3 3-6 10-4 in their last-eightstage clash.

Sania and Kichenok made a strong start and broke theiropponents twice to take the lead. They also did well to save four break pointsin the opening set. The second set went on serve till the eighth game beforeKing and McHale broke Sania and Kichenok to draw level in the contest.

However, the third set was a stroll in the park for Saniaand her partner as they dominated their opponents with superior serves.

The 33-year-old Sania is returning to the WTA circuit after two years. During her two-year break, she battled injury breakdowns before taking a formal break in April 2018 to give birth to her son Izhaan. She is married to Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Malik. Before the ongoing event, Sania last played at China Open in October 2017. A trailblazer in Indian tennis, Sania is a former world No.1 in doubles and has six Grand Slam titles to her credit.

She retired from the singles competition in 2013 after becoming the most successful Indian woman tennis player. In 2007, she attained a career-high 27th position in the WTA singles chart.