India’s Sania Mirza was battling agonising pain as a nasty knee injury left her bid to win Wimbledon doubles glory resting on an ultrasound scan. Mirza was already carrying a niggling left knee problem but tweaked it within minutes of starting her Wimbledon singles first round match against France’s Virginie Razzano on Tuesday.
The world number 60 battled on and even won the second set despite being unable to change direction in her 7-6 (7/4), 2-6, 6-3 first round defeat. The 24-year-old has been playing a “ridiculous” non-stop schedule and whatever the doctors say, she plans a break after Wimbledon regardless. “I’ve had the same injury since just before the French Open. I’ve been playing a lot on it,” Mirza said. “It will get worse if I keep playing on it. At 3-0 I tweaked it in the first set. I served and fell on the leg, tried to change direction and jerked it. I was already on painkillers but immediately the pain level went up 10 times. “I have to see the doctor and get an ultrasound scan.
“It is very, very painful. I can still serve but I can’t move and change direction. I’m hurting to go up and down stairs and even to walk.” Mirza did not blame the injury directly on her schedule but admitted the punishing round of singles, doubles and qualifiers takes its toll. “Tennis takes a lot out of you physically and emotionally,” she said.
“I’ve been playing for 12 months continuously. It’s not easy on the body. “From the French Open until Birmingham, I had 21 days of no day off. That’s ridiculous on the body. Anyone’s body’s going to collapse. But that’s the way the season is.
“I was going to take a little off season after Wimbledon but depending on what my knee says I’ll decide what to do.” Razzano will now face Danish top seed Caroline Wozniacki in the second round. Mirza feels she would have struggled to give a good account of herself given how bad her knee feels.
“Maybe it’s better because going into the next match I would play the number one in the world. That’s hard enough and to play with one leg isn’t very easy,” she said. Mirza has formed a fruitful partnership with Russia’s Elena Vesnina and they are seeded fourth here, while she is also eyeing a shot at the mixed doubles.
The right-hander says she could still cover the right side of the court with a left knee injury. “I could play with solid taping but it’s a decision I have to make after I get the ultrasound as to how bad it could get if I do play on it,” she said.
