Injured Sania Mirza exits Australian Open with calf injury
Melbourne: Sania Mirza's first Grand Slam outing after maternity leave ended with an early exit as the Indian ace retired mid-way into her women's doubles first-round match due to a calf injury, here on Thursday.
Sania and her Ukrainian partner Nadiia Kichenok, who came into the major after winning the doubles title at the Hobart International, were trailing 2-6 0-1 against the Chinese team of Xinyun Han and Lin Zhu when the Indian called it quits.
Sania has injured her leg during practice. She is returning to the circuit after a two-year break. Her right calf strapped heavily, Sania struggled to move freely on the court. It also affected her serve. Kichenok was also struggling at the net, often missing easy put-away volleys.
Serving at 2-4, Sania was broken by the Chinese and they served out the set easily.
The Indian took a medial timeout after the first set. Soon after, the Indo-Ukrainian pair was broken in the first game of the second set and Sania found it difficult to continue.
Sania had also pulled out of the mixed doubles event, forcing compatriot Rohan Bopanna to pair with Kichenok. Also representing India in the mixed doubles is veteran Leander Paes, who has teamed up with Jelena Ostapenko, who had won 2017 French Open.
They are pitted against local wild card entrants Storm Sanders and Marc Polmans.
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Outrage in Pune as pet dog beaten, hanged by owner's family
Pune: A deeply disturbing incident of animal cruelty has surfaced in Pune, where a pet dog, owned by Omkar Jagtap, was reportedly beaten and hanged to death by the family. The incident has sparked widespread public outrage, with calls for justice from animal rights activists and political leaders.
According to a local foundation’s social media post, the dog had been ‘severely’ beaten before being found hanging from a tree. An SOS call had been made to authorities warning of the family's threats to kill the pet if it wasn’t removed immediately, but help arrived too late.
The post shared graphic details, alleging that Jagtap’s mother was seen mercilessly hitting the dog with a thick stick, leaving injuries across its body. The foundation urged for action, stating, “The dog trusted the family, and they betrayed it. If this doesn’t boil your blood, what will? Omkar Jagtap has murdered his dog, a pet he raised since it was a pup.”
The incident drew sharp condemnation from Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray, who demanded action from Pune Police. “I just came across a very, very heartbreaking image of a dog being hung to death by its owner's family in Pune. I am shocked beyond words to see how humans can behave this way. Beyond elections and the other stress of duty, I am appealing to Pune city police to take strict action against those guilty of this. It’s inhumane. Pets are family too," Thackeray wrote on X (formerly Twitter), urging the police to act decisively.
