‘Koi sense hai iss baat ki’ – Fans troll Bangalore franchise as they elect Sania Mirza as their mentor for Women’s T20 League 2023

Published on February 15, 2023

Former India Tennis player Sania Mirza has been elected as the mentor of the Bangalore franchise for the inaugural season of the Women’s T20 League, which is scheduled to be played in Mumbai from March 4 to 26. In 2009, won the Australian Open mixed doubles title partnering Mahesh Bhupathi and, thereby, became the first Indian woman to win a Grand Slam title.

She finished her career with 6 titles which she got in women’s doubles and mixed doubles. She is expected to join the franchise after the completion of the ATP Dubai Open, which would be the final tournament of her career. Before the beginning of the Australian Open, the 36-year-old announced that she would retire from the game. She was defeated in the mix doubles along with India’s Rohan Bopanna in her last major tournament.

“I was a little surprised [at being offered a mentorship role], but I was really excited. I want to make young girls believe sports can be one of their first career choices for them. I want to help the next generation to believe in themselves no matter how much the odds are against you, you can achieve your goals,” Sania told RCB TV.

‘The mental aspect of it is something I look forward to working with the younger girls’: Sania Mirza

Sania Mirza said that she is very happy to work with Indian youngsters and help them in handling the pressure.

“The mental aspect of it is something I look forward to working with the younger girls. I feel I can [help] bring in the mental steadiness, the mental belief, I can talk of the experiences I’ve had over 20 years of playing. Being the only [Indian] woman doing it for so many years has been lonely, but the pressure has been high, that kind of stuff is something I can truly help with,” the former Tennis player stated.

The Bangalore franchise has a star studded lineup where they have the likes of Smriti Mandhana, Ellyse Perry, Meghan Schutt, Sophie Devine, Dan van Niekerk, and Richa Ghosh.

The Bangalore franchise haven’t announce their full coaching staff but, for now, they have former Indian international, VR Vanitha, and, Malolan Rangarajan, a lead talent scout for the Bangalore men’s team in the Indian T20 League. In the support staff, there is also Mike Hesson available, who is the director of the Bangalore franchise teams.

Here’s how fans reacted on the Bangalore franchise’s decision: