Sania Mirza opened her new season on the WTA circuit in style by upsetting fourth seed Russian Maria Kirilenko in the first round of the Hobart International tennis tournament on Monday.
The wildcard Indian scored a 6-4, 6-4 win over her higher-rated opponent, who is ranked 29th in the world, at the USD 145,000 hardcourt event being played in build up to the Australian Open, which is the year's first Grand Slam.