New Delhi: Sania Mirza is a reputation that wants no introduction. Simply because the tennis champ introduced her retirement, it turns into essential to acknowledge that her journey as a girl tennis star of the early 2000s hasn’t been a straightforward trip.
From old-school sexism to her Indianness being questioned for marrying former Pakistan skipper Shoaib Malik, she has confronted loads of challenges from her personal countrymen. However the 6 occasions Grand Slams champion rose above these controversies and paved the best way for brand spanking new era sportswomen.
Let’s check out the highest controversies that surrounded Tennis star, Sania Mirza:
1. “A skirt too quick”
Sania Mirza, a rising star of the early 2000s, confronted the primary hurdle in 2005 when she received right into a scuffle with non secular orthodoxy for carrying a brief skirt. A bunch of Muslim clerics issued a Fatwa in opposition to Mirza over her tennis skirt.
Calling her a ‘corrupting affect’ who leaves nothing to the creativeness along with her quick skirts, non secular clerics demanded she wears one thing extra masking. Media additionally made a spectacle out of Mirza’s skirt including to the harassment of the younger 18-year-old tennis participant.
None of those sexist feedback budged Sania Mirza, and he or she replied, it’s her option to put on no matter she needs.
Then, Sania slammed non secular fanatics in her personal type by turning into the primary Indian to ever attain the 4th spherical within the 2005 US Open Grand Slam.
2. Insulting the Nationwide flag
Sania Mirza was simply 21 years outdated when she had an FIR filed in opposition to her over disrespecting the Nationwide flag. In {a photograph} captured at Hopman Cup in Pert, Sania was seen placing her ft in the direction of the nationwide flag desk high.
The ordeal upset Mirza as individuals had been fast to query her loyalty towards her nation. Recalling the ordeal some years later, Sania Mirza disclosed she felt like quitting tennis however she overcame it and continued to make the nation proud.
3. Marrying Shoaib Malik
Sania’s patriotism was as soon as once more questioned by jingoistic countrymen and media alike, who maintain the patriarchal view {that a} lady loses her identification and blindly accepts her husband’s beliefs after marriage.
Sania Mirza tied the knot with Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Malik in 2012. Mirza was referred to as anti-India for marrying a Pakistani man. Sania as soon as received emotional in a TV interview whereas recalling the criticism she confronted saying it doesn’t matter what she does individuals proceed to query her Indianness. Pakistani public additionally continues to guage Sania Mirza’s character to at the present time.
Even at present, from accusations of being a traitor to objectification and sexualization, Sania Mirza faces social media harassment by individuals from each side.
Sania, nevertheless, hit again at trolls by persevering with to characterize India in Tennis and residing her greatest life.
Nonetheless a star
Though Sania Mirza introduced retirement as a consequence of well being points, she continued to point out her mastery in Tennis until her very finish. Sania gained the primary title in Ostrava Open 2021 along with her Chinese language accomplice Shuai Zhang.