Friday, January 21 2005 18:05 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Melbourne: After her gutsy performance against Serena Williams at the Australian Open today (Jan 21, 2005), Sania Mirza said she took heart from the fact that she could match the six-time Grand Slam champion stroke for stroke on tennis' big stage.

"It was good to know that I can match her. I had some good chances, but she took her chances when it counted," Sania said after going down 6-1 6-4 to the American seventh seed in the women's singles third round at the Vodafone Arena.

The 18-year old Hyderabadi girl, ranked 166 on the WTA Tour, was the first Indian woman to reach this far in a Grand Slam event.

She put up a spirited display in the second set where she forced three break points and saved two match points.

Serena, however, raised her game when it mattered and maintained her straight-set win record in the event.

"That is the difference between girls in the top 10 and the rest of us. She played the big points better," said Sania who earned the biggest pay cheque of her career, Aus $ 46,250.

She grabbed 66 WTA points, equivalent to winning 11 $ 10,000 titles, that should push her ranking to around 130 when updated at the end of the month.

Sania said she did feel nervous in the lead up to what she had described as the "biggest match of her life".

"I had butterflies in my stomach for two days. I couldn't get to sleep last night. In the first set, I was very tight. But I was more confident as I got the feel of play. I had fun," she said.

The 2003 Wimbledon girls doubles champion said she missed her parents who are on a Haj pilgrimage.

"Their prayers have obviously been with me because I got to the third round. Unfortunately they haven't been able to see me play but I have been speaking to them a lot on the phone," the teenager said.

Sania hoped her exploits on the banks of Yarra River would inspire confidence in her compatriots.

"If I can do it, anyone can do it. That is what this should mean to the other girls (in India)."