Newly wed tennis star Sania Mirza has said she will retain her maiden name and play for another three to four years.

In an interview to ‘People’ magazine along with husband and former Pakistan cricket captain Shoaib Malik, Sania said, “no matter what happens I am always going to be Sania Mirza. Maybe later I’ll add his name (sic).”

She said they have chosen Palm Jumeirah in Dubai as their new residence.

“My husband wants to live in Palm Jumeirah and I am not fussy, so that’s where we live,” says Sania.

The couple said their courtship developed over telephone after the first few meetings.

“Suddenly we were constantly texting and then we started talking on the phone for hours. So that’s where things started for us,” says Sania.

Sania said her mother would keep saying that she was wasting so much money on phone calls. “I would tell her that it’s not a waste,” the 23-year-old tennis star said.

On the controversy surrounding their marriage, the two of them said it brought them closer together.

“Hats off to my parents who supported Shoaib like they have stood by me even before he became a part of the family. That got us all much closer,” said Sania.

Shoaib says he also had full faith in Sania’s love. “Sania always knew the truth so I was very confident. We were together and surrounded by people who loved and supported us.”

When asked about their busy schedules, Shoaib said, “We are going to be together for a lifetime so it won’t be very difficult to stay away from each other for a few weeks or months.”

“Anyway, it’s temporary. I’ll probably play for another three to four years,” Sania added.

Sania said Shoaib was more romantic than her. “He is more romantic. When I was getting the mehndi done, he sat with me for four hours because he wanted to.”

On their marriage, she said, “Five years from now when we go on a drive, I want us to be excited at the thought of being together and holding hands.”

Shoaib said Sania was very adjusting, extremely sweet and very punctual. More importantly, she doesn’t get angry, he said.

Sania felt Shoaib was an easy person to live with. “We have spent the last seven days together and we haven’t felt like we are in each other’s face. It’s been very easy to live with him,” she said of her week-old marriage.

The pair is expecting a warm welcome in Pakistan. Shoaib says, “I’ve heard that people of Pakistan are very excited and people are saying that there will be dhols to welcome Sania.”

Both of them are now looking ahead to their honeymoon – she likes the Maldives, he prefers Europe – after which they will settle down in Dubai.