Punish dope offenders if found guilty: Sania Mirza

Indian tennis star Sania Mirza yesterday expressed her displeasure over the dope scandal involving Indian athletes and said that they should be handed stringent punishment if found guilty.

Of the eight athletes who tested positive seven were women. The list included double Asian Games gold medalist Ashwini Akkunji.


Sania Mirza

"Being a sportsperson myself, I think any of these athletes should not be accused of doing anything wrong until proven. But if they are proven guilty, of course they should be punished," she said.

Sania added that the country does not have any up and coming woman player to take her place and feature in the Grand Slam events once she retires.

"I don't see a great future in women's tennis in the country. After me, I don't see any other woman tennis player who can feature in big tournaments," she added.