“Actually, my younger daughter Anam is more excited than Sania, who by nature is very quiet. Sania, who was very studious still rues the fact that she couldn’t continue after Class XII. In fact, when she was first selected for an invitational tournament, she wasn’t very keen to participate in it as it meant skipping an exam. But her headmistress at Nasr School — Tiger Pataudi’s sister — persuaded her and only then did she oblige”.

Talking about the flip side of stardom, Imran informs that Sania has enrolled in a degree-level correspondence course, but has not found the time to appear for the exams. “I like her to play for three more years and by that time she would be a veteran on the circuit. We want her to have a rounded life rather than just make tennis a living,” concludes the doting father.