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Sania began playing tennis at the tender age of 6 under the guidance of her father Imran Mirza and turned professional in 2003. She is the highest ranked female tennis player from India, with a career high ranking of 27 in singles and 18 in doubles. According to the latest WTA rankings, she is currently ranked 31^st in Singles and 21^st in Doubles.

After turning professional, this young sensation has shown exceptional talent in the racquet sport. Her first major victory was during the 2003 Wimbledon Championship, when she teamed up with Alisa Kleybanova of Russia and won the Girls Double title. The following year, she finished runners up at the Asian Tennis Championship.

Year 2005 was a break-through year for Sania, as she became the fir st Indian women to reach the fourth round of a Grand Slam tournament, at the U.S Open defeating Mashona Washington, Maria Elena Camerin and 2007 Wimbledon runner-up Marion Bartoli. Even though she reached the third round of the Australian Open, Sania was defeated by the eventual champion Serena Williams.

In the year 2006, Mirza won the silver medal in the women's singles category at the Doha Asian Games and the gold in the mixed doubles partnering with Leander Paes. She was also part of the Indian women's team that won the silver medal in the team event.

Mirza showed outstanding results in the year 2007 during the summer hard-court season. She finished eighth in the U.S Open series and reached the final of Bank of the West Classic. That year, she won the doubles event with Shahar Pe'er and reached the quarterfinals of the Tier 1 Acura Classic.

The beginning of 2008 did not prove to be on a very high note. Sania entered the AustralianOpen seeded 31^st in the tournament and lost to Venus Williams in the Third round. She had a great run with compatriot Mahesh Bhupati reaching the finals of the mixed doubles, but unfortunately the team just didn't prove good enough on the day.

With a little more than four weeks left for the Beijing Olympics, India's hope for a medal in the women's singles and doubles rest firmly on Sania's young but capable shoulders. However, only her most ardent fans would consider her a contender as this has been a really difficult year for her, consistently plagued with injury.

Achievements : Holds the distinction of being the first Indian woman to be seeded in a Grand Slam Tournament; representing India in Tennis at the 2008 Summer Olympics; recipient of the Arjuna Award (2004) and the Padma Sri (2006)

Birth Date : November 5, 1986

Birth Place / Residence : Mumbai / Hyderabad, India

Reference:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sania_Mirza