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Indian tennis ace Sania Mirza called Roger Federer ' a freak, a genius' when she spoke about the 20-time Grand Slam champion on an Instagram Live show with India's football team captain Sunil Chhetri. The former World No. 1 doubles star, who has won six Grand Slam doubles titles during her career, was asked who was her dream mixed doubles partner, Mirza had no hesitation to respond with the Swiss legend's name.
"I have had the privilege of playing with Roger Federer. He is a freak, a genius. I had the best seat in the house that day." Mirza had to cut short her singles career due to injuries in order to focus on her doubles career but says she wouldn't swap her success in doubles for an extended singles career.
"No. In doubles, I became the world's number one player. That is one of my proudest achievements on a tennis court." Speaking about her comeback to the courts earlier this year, Mirza spoke about the hard work she had to put in to get back in shape.
"I did 2.5 hours of cardio every day to get back in shape. I had a C-section and couldn't do core exercises for three months. Cardio was the only option to lose weight. In my comeback, I didn't imagine in my wildest dreams that I would win my first tournament." "I felt I had enough tennis left in me.
It was an Olympic year and I had never won an Olympic medal. When I started my weight loss journey (I had gained 23 kg) I was motivated by people who said I could never lose weight, leave alone coming back to the court." Mirza won the Fed Cup Heart award recently - making her the first Indian to win the award.