Martina Hingis inducted in Tennis Hall of Fame

Zee Media Bureau

Swiss tennis legend Martina Hingis was inducted in Tennis Hall of Fame on Saturday. At 32, she became one of the youngest members to be included in the one of the most elite clubs of tennis. The Swiss player was formally inducted at Newport, Rhode Island. Hingis said she was humbled by the honour. "Thank you, tennis. You gave me the world. And now I honestly am out of words, because there are no words to explain what I feel. You chose to give me a place here for eternity," she said. Named after Martina Navratilova, the Czechoslovakia born Hingis took the world by storm when she won the 1993 Roland Garros junior title at just 12 year of age. She became the fourth youngest player to be inducted in the Tennis Hall of Fame, following Tracy Austin (30), Bjorn Borg (31) and Hana Mandlikova (32). Hingis won three Australian Open titles (1997, 1998, 1999), one Wimbledon (1997) and a US Open title (1997). She held the number one ranking for 209 weeks. She also won nine grand slam doubles titles and a mixed doubles title. The International Tennis Hall of Fame president Stan Smith said Hingis was a worthy recipient. "Having achieved world number one status in both singles and doubles and having won an incredible 15 grand slam tournament titles, Martina Hingis is undoubtedly one of the world`s elite tennis players, and we are glad to pay tribute to her among the legends of the sport," Smith said.