Sarah Gronert ignites tennis gender row

Ranked 619 in the world, tennis player Sarah Gronert is yet to make much of an impression on the main WTA tour. But, in the lower reaches of the professional game, the 22-year-old German has been causing a stir.

Gronert was born with both male and female genitalia, and almost quit tennis three years ago because of the controversy - and locker-room bitchiness - that this caused. But after she underwent surgery to remove the male genitalia, and pleaded her case with the WTA, the sport's governing body ruled that Gronert should be allowed to compete as a woman.

This year Gronert has won two $10,000 titles, and her success has reignited the controversy about her gender. "There is no girl who can hit serves like that, not even Venus Williams," said Schlomo Tzoref, who coaches a player that Gronert beat on her way to winning the Raanana tournament in Israel. "When I heard her story, I was in shock. I don't know if it's fair that she can compete or not. She does have an advantage, but if this is what the WTA have decided, they probably know best."

This may not be the last we hear of Gronert, as Tzoref thinks that she's rather good. "If she begins to play continuously," he said, "within six months she will be within the Top 50."