They have done it again. The Sania Mirza/Martina Hingis Juggernaut refuses to abate. Recently rechristened as Santina, the Indo-Swiss dream team laid its claim on another WTA World Tour title, when the duo registered a straight sets victory over two Romanian women Irina Camelia-Begu and Monica Niculescu. In an emphatic continuance of their magnificent performance since joining each other in March 2015, Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis have ruled the women’s doubles scene and they don’t look like stopping anytime soon. In Wuhan Open, the Indo-Swiss pair did not drop a single set in their progress to the final. The top-seeded pair’s dominance is evident from their winning 61 out of 102 points in the entire tournament. In women singles draw, USA’s Venus Williams won her 47th WTA singles title, when her opponent Garbine Muguruza of Spain pulled out in the second set due to an ankle injury with Williams leading 6-3, 3-0. Nine months ago, Venus had registered her last WTA victory at the Auckland Classic by beating Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki in the final.
Ever since they decided to join hands as double partners, Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis have literally dominated the women’s doubles scene in tennis. Already the top seeds and winner of two back-to-back Grand Slams, the Indo-Swiss pair added another title against their names on Saturday, when they defeated the Romanian pair of Irina-Camelia Begu and Monica Niculescu in the final of 2015 Wuhan Open in China. Sania/Hingis, who reached the final without dropping a set in the tournament, continued their magical on-court chemistry against the Romanians and won in straight sets 6-2, 6-3.
As per their latest playing strategy, Sania played forcefully from the back court, while Hingis used her quick reflexes and sizzling volleys to dumbfound Camelia Begu/Niculescu. In the first set, Sania/Hingis took a 2-0 lead but the Romanians combined well to bring the score to 2-1 by breaking Hingis in the third game. The Indo-Swiss combine, however, broke right back and raced away to take the first set 6-2. In the second set, Camelia Begu/Niculescu made a strong start and broke Sania/Hingis early and to lead 2-0. However, Sania/Hingis wrested control soon and reeled off 4 consecutive points. It wasn’t possible for the Romanians to bounce back in the game as Sania/Hingis finished the match in 69 minutes to record their seventh WTA title in 2015, including the Wimbledon and US Open crowns.
In the women’s singles final, US veteran Venus Williams won the 47th WTA title of her career by beating Spain’s Garbine Muguruza, who was forced to retire in the second set because of an ankle injury. Both Venus and Muguruza were less than 100% fit as they took on each other in the Wuhan Open final. The 35-year old Venus is a seven time Grand Slam singles winner but her game has dropped several notches in recent years. The first set was close as the two players kept trading breaks twice in the first seven games but once Venus took a 4-3 lead, Muguruza’s movements on court sharply deteriorated. Venus won the next five games and after taking the first set 6-3, led 3-0 in the second. That is when Muguruza called it quits as her ankle was literally frozen and Venus Williams collected the 47th WTA title of her illustrious tennis career.
