- Sania Mirza, the Indian tennis star, received the Sportstar Aces Inspirational Icon award.
- Mirza thanked everyone in attendance for the prestigious award.
- It is also an honour to receive the award from Sunil Gavaskar: Sania.
Sania Mirza, the Indian tennis star, received the Sportstar Aces Inspirational Icon award on Tuesday in Mumbai for inspiring thousands of people around the world through her incredible legacy in the game over the years.
Sunil Gavaskar, the veteran Indian cricketer, was asked to say a few words on stage after receiving the trophy.
Mirza thanked everyone in attendance for the prestigious award, recalling her dream of becoming a great tennis player and appearing on the cover of Sportstar magazine.
“I am honoured to be here. It has been quite an emotional last couple of months as you know that a lot of things have been happening and a lot of decisions have been [taken],” she said.
The star tennis player went on that while growing up as athletes, “we have read the sports star magazine and we had dreamt of being on the cover of the magazine.”
“I remember as a child opening up the magazine and this poster coming up with the cover photos of athletes and I wished one day I would be on this cover. The magazine always inspired me. Due to that, it has been a true honour for me to be here and to be part of this Sports Star family,” she remarked.
She went on to say that being a part of this sports celebrity was her dream.
“It has been a 20-year-long journey in which everybody has been with me through thick and thin, wins and losses. It is said all good things also come to an end.”
“I am full of gratitude that I have been able to do, to play for my family and for myself and play for you all. There is no better way to start this new phase of life than with this award,” she delightedly said.
“It is also an honour to receive the award from Sunil Gavaskar. It doesn’t get more special than this,” she concluded.
Mirza, the wife of Pakistan cricketer Shoaib Malik, has been tight-lipped about the couple’s divorce rumours for quite some time.
Malik, however, had broken his silence on the divorce rumours during an interview with a publication about his divorce rumours, asking the people to “leave it alone”.
The cricketer had expressed his displeasure with the constant media focus on rumours and gossip about his possible separation from his wife of 12 years.
“It is our matter. Neither I nor my wife is answering this question. Leave it alone,” he had said.
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