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I'll play with anyone for my country: Sania Mirza

July 8, 2012

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Sania Mirza had caused a serious stir in the country with her media release on June 28, 2012, claiming she had been used as bait by the All India Tennis Association in dealing with the feud involving players Leander Paes, Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna.

In her first interview since issuing the press release, Sania talks at Wimbledon about the forthcoming three weeks of preparation, the significance of the Olympics and the way forward for Indian tennis.

Now that the controversy is all settled, are you gearing up for the Olympics, which is just about 15 days away?

Indeed I am. As I have said in the press release, what happened wasn't good for Indian tennis or rather Indian sport. People were tired of the negativity around. I was deeply hurt and pained with the events and needed to express myself which I did. But now I am completely focused on the Olympics. I am home for a week with family in India after which I travel to San Diego for a week to get some more match practice, and then I am back in London on July 23 to train for the Games. I will train for a week on grass and will be fully prepared by the time competition starts.

You are playing both doubles and mixed doubles. In mixed doubles (whoever you play with) you have a real chance of a medal. Do you agree?

I am absolutely delighted for Rushmi (Chakravarthy) that she is getting to play in the Olympics. I have played with her in the past and we have some good results to show for.

In mixed doubles, we do have a chance. I will play with anyone for my country. I may have my personal preferences but such preferences have never come in the way of playing for India. At the same time, every athlete has his or her strengths and weaknesses and we need to be aware of these strengths when picking a team. While we will surely go for a medal, let me say that each of the 10,500 athletes in London will be going for medals. However, Roger Federer, for example, has never won an Olympic singles gold. Nicolas Massau of Chile has won two (Seoul 1988, singles and doubles). Does that make Roger, one of the best-ever tennis players of all times, any lesser player? I'd like to request our media and our people to stand by us and inspire us to do our best. I can assure you we will do all we can to make the country proud at the Olympics.

You have 12 medals to show for your efforts for India at various multidisciplinary sports events. The only thing missing is an Olympic medal. Does it make London any extra special and do you feel any extra pressure?

Playing for the country is an honour. The ultimate honour, in fact. If you want to look at it as pressure, you will find it very difficult to cope with the expectations of a billion people. I look at it as an opportunity, as being among the few who have been given this opportunity to make the country proud. At the same time, I must say that what was happening immediately before and during Wimbledon was creating unnecessary pressure for us all. Despite winning the French Open mixed doubles, it was as if we needed to do well in Wimbledon to prove ourselves. It was unfair and was creating unhealthy pressure, which is always very difficult to deal with. There's no doubt it impacted upon our performance.

Beijing 2008 wasn't a particularly happy Olympics for you because of injury. Do you actually feel a sense of pleasant surprise that you are back again for London after three surgeries in the last five years?

Absolutely. Injuries can end a sportsperson's career and I am glad I have been able to make a comeback and make it to the world's top 10 in doubles and have done reasonably well in mixed doubles. Justine Henin, for example, had to leave the sport after one surgery. I always believed I had tennis left in me and I am grateful to god for this opportunity.

What should the country expect from Sania Mirza at the Olympics?

I can assure you of more than 100% effort. I will do all I can to win a medal. To see the national flag go up while standing on the podium is the proudest moment in an athlete's life and I will want to experience that for myself in London. Please just keep praying for the entire Indian contingent. We have a really good chance of doing well at these Games and it will provide a huge fillip to Indian Olympic sport if we are all able to perform to potential.



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Agencies
April 14,2020

Tokyo, Apr 14: Tokyo organizers said Tuesday they have no B Plan in the event the Olympics need to be postponed again because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Masa Takaya, the spokesman for the Tokyo Olympics, said organizers are proceeding under the assumption the Olympics will open on July 23, 2021. The Paralympics follow on Aug. 24.

Those dates were set last month by the International Olympic Committee and Japanese officials after the coronavirus pandemic made it clear the Olympics could not be held as scheduled this summer.

We are working toward the new goal, Takaya said, speaking in English on a teleconference call with journalists.

We don't have a B Plan. The severity of the pandemic and the death toll has raised questions if it will even be feasible to hold the Olympics in just over 15 months. Several Japanese journalists raised the question on the call.

All I can tell you today is that the new games' dates for both the Olympic and Paralympic Games have been just set up, Takaya said.

In that respect, Tokyo 2020 and all concerned parties now are doing their very best effort to deliver the games next year." IOC President Thomas Bach was asked about the possibility of a postponement in an interview published in the German newspaper Die Welt on Sunday.

He did not answer the question directly, but said later that Japanese organizers and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe indicated they could not manage a postponement beyond next summer at the lastest.

The Olympics draw 11,000 athletes and 4,400 Paralympic athletes and large support staffs from 206 national Olympic committees.

There are also questions about frozen travel, rebooking hotels, cramming fans into stadiums and arenas, securing venues, and the massive costs of rescheduling, which is estimated in Japan at 2 billion- 6 billion.

Tokyo 2020 CEO Toshiro Muto addressed the issue in a news conference on Friday. He is likely to be asked about it again on Thursday when local organizers and the IOC hold a teleconferene with media in Japan.

The other major question is the cost of the delay; how much will it be, and who pays? Bach said in the Sunday interview that the IOC would incur several hundred million dollars in added costs. Under the so-called Host City Agreement, Japan is liable for the vast majority of the expenses.

This is impossible to say for now, Takaya, the spokesman said.

It is not very easy to estimate the exact amount of the games' additional costs, which have been impacted by the postponement."

Tokyo says it's spending 12.6 billion to organize the Olympics. But a Japanese government audit published last year says the costs are twice that much. Of the total spending, 5.6 billion in private money. The rest is from Japanese governments.

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News Network
May 9,2020

May 9: Indian cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar has donated an undisclosed amount to financially help 4,000 underprivileged people, including children from Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) schools, amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Tendulkar made the donation to the Hi5 Foundation, a non-profit organisation based out of Mumbai.

“Best wishes to team Hi5 for your efforts in supporting families of daily wage earners,” Tendulkar tweeted.

The organisation, through a tweet, thanked Tendulkar for doing his bit for the needy.

“Thanks @sachin_rt for proving once again that #sports encourages compassion! Your generous donation towards our #COVID19 fund enables us to financially aid 4000 underprivileged people, including children from @mybmc schools. Our budding sportspersons thank you, Little Master!”

The legendary batsman had earlier contributed Rs 25 lakh each to Prime Minister’s Relief Fund and Chief Minister’s Relief Fund for the country’s fight against COVID-19. Tendulkar had earlier pledged to bear the cost of feeding 5,000 people for a month in a couple of areas in Mumbai.

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Agencies
August 4,2020

New Delhi, Aug 4: Former India women's team captain Anjum Chopra firmly believes that the BCCI has a plan for women's cricket but she wants the Board to communicate its ideas more specifically.

Speaking to news agency, Chopra, who is now a successful broadcaster, said the BCCI is thinking in earnest about the progress of women's cricket.

"It's not that the BCCI is not thinking about women's cricket. I only think they need to be more specific in communication about women's cricket," Chopra said.

"I firmly believe that they must be thinking about women's cricket but the communication all this while has been very specific to men's cricket."

The latest trigger for criticism of BCCI was India's withdrawal from a tour of England in September owing to logistical issues arising out of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chopra concedes it was "not nice" but Indian players' participation in the women's IPL, in November, will still be useful preparation for next year's ODI World Cup.

"It is heartening to see women's cricket making headlines. They should have been a part of that England tour and it did not feel nice initially but the women's IPL, irrespective of the format, will be helpful for World Cup preparations. Any form of cricket is good preparation," Chopra said.

"Missing out on a tournament is not nice, but logistically there may have been issues. And you can't send an under-prepared team."

"If you see in isolation we may have missed out on an opportunity to play in England. The more the girls play the better it is, before playing a tournament of the stature of World Cup. The assurance from the president is a very good thing."

Chopra welcomed the Sourav Ganguly-led BCCI's decision to hold the women's event in the UAE alongside the IPL, which will run from September 19 to November 10. The women's IPL will coincide with the business end of the men's league.

"I am definitely happy, it's always nice to be part of any cricket anywhere across the world.

"They should have been nearing the final stages of the preparation for the World Cup by now, but because of the pandemic things did not go as planned," she added.

Chopra had a successful international career spanning over 17 years, during which she represented India in a record six World Cups and became the first woman cricketer to appear in 100 One-day Internationals.

She also felt that the pandemic would not have much impact on the women's game that has gained momentum in recent times.

"...Cricket was on pause button...Once cricket resumes and players are back on the park, everything is going to get picked up. It might take some time to get started as everything starts from zero...

"The awareness the women's game has created, I hope it stays. They will just restart, not start after the pandemic."

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