Sania crashes out of Dubai Open

Sania Mirza squandered a set advantage and went down to fourth seed Jelena Jankovic of Serbia 6-4, 3-6, 4-6 in the US $1,500,000 Dubai Tennis Championships on Wednesday.

The Indian ace, who pulled off a 7-6(5), 6-2 win over Russian qualifier Vera Dushevina in the opening round, found her touch early in the second round match, sending down her trademark forehand volleys to unsettle her higher ranked rival to go one set up.

But the Hyderabadi failed to maintain the momentum, and allowed her Serbian opponent to claw back into the match, which was also made easier by some unforced errors by the 32nd ranked Indian.

Jankovic tightened the screws and won the second set before fighting off a strong challenge from the Indian to advance into the next round of the WTA Tier II event.

Sania was also shown the door in the doubles. She and partner Francesca Schiavone went down to top seeds Cara Black-Liezel Huber, losing 2-6, 7-4 (4), 10-12 in a second round match.

Sania Mirza gets a few tips from her father Imran during her singles match.

Photograph: Snaps India