MELBOURNE: Winning and losing are but moments and scorelines compute the sum of the difference, but it is the little steps, the big stretch, that tell the story. Sania Mirza knows.
The Hyderabad schoolgirl, just six, might not have bargained for all she has had to contend with when she started out. It was a love story after all. In the years that followed, she proved equal to the task, fought custom and tradition, spurned the beaten path and defied society. She skipped around cow dung courts in skirts.
"I achieved dreams that I never thought I would be able to achieve," she said, her ‘You Can't Handle The Truth' cap drawn over her forehead, her face tearstained. "I'm proud of what we (as a family) have been able to do, with the kind of facilities and infrastructure we had (in India) 30 years ago."
Sania Mirza's Grand Slam titles
The Australian Open mixed doubles final, Sania's Grand Slam swansong, didn't go the way of Rohan Bopanna and Sania. Lusia Stefani and Rafael Matos won the first set after the Indians were looking good when leading 5-3. The Brazilian pairing came through 7-6 (2), 6-2 in a clash of little margins.
"If I had to picture a dream scenario, of how I wanted to go out, it would be on one of the biggest arenas in the world," the 36-year-old said. "Of course, I would win in that dream, but I didn't in this one."
Sania, who spent 91 weeks as the doubles world No. 1, is scheduled to play two more tournaments — in Abu Dhabi (with Bethanie Mattek-Sands) and Dubai (with Madison Keys), both in February.
The Indian superstar took heart from the fact that she was leaving the Grand Slam stage after playing a final.
"I feel there are more important things in life, my priorities have changed after having a son," she reasoned on why she was stopping. "Today I'm here, sitting after a Grand Slam final, knowing that I still have the level to make it toa Grand Slam final. I'm choosing to say that I want other things and that is very important for me."
Bopanna, 42, and misty eyed, looked down at his hands as Sania spoke.
"Rohan and I, we might be sad and upset that we lost a final, but at the end of the day, this moment, this memory with Rohan is something I will cherish for the rest of my life," she said. "We might've lost Rio (Olympics) where we came close to winning a medal, but that's an emotion we shared together. That brought us closer as people, as friends"
"I asked him to play and he said yes," she said of the question she popped to the Bangalorean in December.
As she walked into the sunset at Melbourne Park, Sania admitted the stage was hard to leave.
The 36-year-old has beaten the best of players and bunked great odds, but every athlete knows the one thing she cannot beat is time. Sania then did the next best thing, she walked away when she still had the stage. She picked the time.