Sania Mirza on motherhood: More than me raising my son Izhaan, he has raised me as a mother
Sania Mirza turns a year older today, and ask her if she also turned wiser with it and she says, “Wiser I am not sure, but patient, for sure. I am able to enjoy and appreciate the smaller things a lot more.” The former tennis player admits that she is not much of a birthday person. “I love having my family and friends around, but I don’t really do much. I like to keep it as quiet as possible, but I do like to have my me time on the day with people who love me around,” she says.
Sania Mirza has a glimmer in her voice as she speaks about her son Izhaan, whom she shares with ex-husband, Shoaib Malik. “I am so proud of him for the young man he is turning out to be. He is so kind and has a lot of love and empathy. He has shown me the most unconditional kind of love that there ever is. More than me raising him, he has raised me as a mother and made me become a better person.”
Ask her if he is showing any interest in sports and she says, “I do get asked this question since the time I was pregnant. He loves sports and that’s in his blood. He loves playing football, tennis and swimming. He also plays drums. I don’t care what he does as long as he is enjoying himself, having a good time and giving it his 100%. I will give complete freedom to him to choose as that is how I was raised and that is how I want to raise Izhaan as well.”
As she turns 39 today, Sania admits that she is loving the post-tennis innings in her life where she is getting to explore different facets of her life. “The amazing part about being a sportsperson is that you get to retire early to be young enough to try and do different things, after having a successful career. I feel extremely privileged to be in that position. We just started our new podcast, I am getting into pickleball and have my own tennis academy. Obviously, I still do mentorship programs, motivational speaking, and I love them all.”
But tennis often sees many comebacks after retirement. Is one on the cards for her too? “I was a professional player for 20 years, so I was very sure that I was done with that innings of my life with my body, emotionally and mentally as well. I remember when I got pregnant, everyone asked me why wasn’t I retiring. It was because I always knew I wanted to come back. But this time when I retired, I knew that I couldn’t possibly be the best version of myself at the core as I had already done enough. So, a comeback is not a part of the plan.”
