Sania falters at the final hurdle

It was so near yet so far for Sania Mirza as her dream of making it to the Australian Open was ruined after an heart breaking loss in the wo...

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It was so near yet so far for Sania Mirza as her dream of making it to the Australian Open was ruined after an heart breaking loss in the women’s singles final of the Asian Tennis Championships in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, today.

With the $100,000 event carrying an automatic wild card into the Australian Open main draw for the singles’ winners, Sania was hoping to become the youngest Indian woman to enter a Grand Slam.

But those hopes evaporated as she went down 2-6, 1-6 to Nali of China in the final, according to information received here.

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“She played out of her mind. She never allowed me to play my game. It was very difficult to read where she was going to hit. I never expected her to play so well. She played a great match,” said the 17-year-old Indian as she tried come to terms with the loss.

Sania went into the match in great form, having dismantled top seed Mi-Ra Jeon of Korea in the quarterfinal with her aggressive ground strokes. But Li, who had struggled through her way to the final, packed more power than Sania. The Chinese second seed never allowed the Indian to get into rhythm.