Former Indian tennis player Sathwika Sama has brought in a big change in her career from tennis to law enforcement. The woman player has been appointed as the Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) in the Telangana State Police.
The high-ranking position was earned by Sama through her brilliance in academics as the topper of the TGPSC Group I Exams. The former tennis player will now be seen bringing in her skills to civil services. The Telangana state has been recognizing the achievements of several sportspersons in India, not just in tennis but in cricket too. Last year, India’s fast bowler Mohammed Siraj was appointed as the Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) in Telangana. The cricketer received a Group-I government position from the Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy.
Sama’s brilliance in tennis
Earlier, Sama was considered as one of the honored players in women’s tennis who had quite a successful career. During her professional stage, she achieved some remarkable achievements for India.
Firstly, she won the Women’s Singles Gold Medal at the 2019 South Asian Games. Secondly, she had a career-high WTA Singles Ranking of 809 in 2020. Her last appearance was during the W15 Chiang Rai 2022 Tennis Tournament in Thailand. She participated in the ITF Women’s Singles event, which she lost against the USA’s Amy Zhu by sets of 0-2, 0-6, and 2-6. In that year, she was ranked 882 by the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA).
Besides her on-court achievements, Sama was also recognized as a writer through her writings in the Indian Tennis Daily (ITD) guest columnist section. Her column was popularly known as ‘Sammy Speaks’.
Current top women’s tennis stars
As per the latest rankings of the current year, India’s top women tennis players include Sahaja Yamalapalli (Rank 347), Shrivalli Bhamidipaty (Rank 374), and Ankita Raina (Rank 447).
16-year-old Maaya Rajeshwaran Revathi, ranked No. 54 in world junior rankings, has recently gained attention, impressing everyone with her debut win at the 2025 US Open juniors. Revathi, who has been trained at the Rafa Nadal Academy, reached the semi-finals of the WTA 125K Mumbai Open, becoming the first player of her age to qualify. She lost the game against Swiss player Jil Teichmann by sets of 3-6, and 1-6.
Inputs sourced from [WTA Tennis.com]
