Sania Mirza Opens Up on Post-Retirement Struggles, Says She Cried Missing Her Routine

Sania Mirza: Retirement can hit athletes out of left field. The competition comes to a screeching halt, the schedule stops chugging along, and that whole rhythm built up over decades just poofs into thin air overnight. Former pro tennis star Sania Mirza says she felt that shift all too well, right after her very last match back in 2023.

In an interview with Zoom, Sania described the morning after her final match in 2023 as one of the toughest stretches she has faced. The 39-year-old, who ended her two-decade career at the Dubai Open, said she woke up “empty,” unsure what the next set of hours was supposed to look like.

Sania Mirza on how she felt about retirement

She said the feeling arrived fast: No training session, no gym block or match preparation. “It felt like a part of me had died,” she said, adding that she had spent three decades inside a fixed schedule and then, suddenly, there was none.

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Her parents, present with her at the time, were surprised by the reaction. She said they reminded her that retirement was her own call. But, as she put it, the shift felt like burying a version of herself that had existed since childhood.

Losing a routine, building another

Sania explained that she cried for “two hours” in her room that morning. She said the reaction was uncharacteristic but necessary, because the reality of a new life had settled in.

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The adjustment did not stay limited to her. For years, her family’s movements circled her training and travel. After her son Izhaan was born, coordination only grew tighter.

“That entire system had to be rearranged,” she said. Her father had travelled with her for long periods; her mother had done the same. The end of her career meant a fresh balance for everyone involved.

Sania eventually shifted into mentoring with the RCB camp and then into television work. She said she now feels busier post-retirement than she expected.

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What experts say about the emotional shift?

Psychotherapist and life coach Delnna Rrajesh weighed in on the situation with The Indian Express. She says reactions like this aren't limited to sports, though.

When a role you're in takes on a huge role in your overall identity, it can feel like losing ground beneath your feet when that role comes to an end.

Rrajesh noted that navigating this period requires accepting the grief, rebuilding structure slowly, and widening identity beyond performance. Retirement, she said, is not a collapse but a realignment. One that builds on discipline and resilience from earlier years as the foundation for the next chapter.

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