For most players, a year and a half away from professional tennis is enough to blur the rhythm, dull the instinct, and soften the fire that once burned on court. But as 41-year-old Vera Zvonareva walked into Dubai this week, she carried none of that hesitation. Instead, she arrived with a quiet resolve – one that soon turned into the biggest storyline of the ITF W100 tournament. Few expected her to string together wins. Even fewer anticipated the depth of the run she’d produce. But she did! However, fairytales in tennis often meet a reality check… Guess what?

In Dubai, that reality arrived in the form of a fearless 20-year-old Croatian rising star. Zvonareva arrived in Dubai without a ranking, without expectations, and without the spotlight that once followed her across the biggest stages

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