Sania's best is yet to come: Coach

Bangalore, Feb 18 (UNI) Despite her modest show in recent tournaments, Indian's tennis sensation Sania Mirza's best is yet to come, according to her coach S Narendranath.

The coach reckons that the country has not yet seen the best of Sania's game as she was still evolving and very young. ''I think so. She is pretty solid with her game now. Her shot selection has improved a lot,'' he said.

The coach, who runs the GVK Pro Tennis Academy in Hyderabad along with former Davis Cupper Vasudev Reddy, is now coaching Sania after her travelling coach John Farrington of Bahamas parted ways.

''I tried to help her in whatever way I can, especially when she is in Hyderabad. I always find out time for her, Narendra told UNI at the KSLTA Stadium here today.

When asked that the likes of Maria Sharaparova, Kim Clijsters, Martina Hingis have taken the game to a new level. So, is there a yawning gap in the standards of play between these big guns and Sania, he said, ''Absolutely not. Sania is well on her way to reaching there. Her first hurdle should be to break into the top-20 and then take it from there. But I don't want to set any timeframe for it. All I can say is that she has potential to be there.'' ''Don't just dread her forehand,'' says Narendra who has seen Sania Mirza rise through the ranks. Having been around the India's biggest tennis name since the time she was slugging it out at the junior level, he knows her game inside out.

The former national hardcourt champion believes that Sania has added quite a few weapons in her armoury. ''People talk a lot about her forehand. But let me tell you she has improved her backhand in leaps and bounds. Her backhand can act as a surprise element for her opponents who are more wary of her forehand,'' the soft-spoken former player said.

Former Indian Davis Cupper Asif Ismail was also roped in as a replacement for Farrington but due to pressing commitments, even, he couldn't continue for long. Under the present arrangement, Sania travels on the Tour with South African fitness trainer Heath Mathew and is sans a full-time coach. But when she is playing international tourneys in India and when she is in her hometown Hyderabad, Narendra is at hand to guide her.

UNI