Sania Mirza - Personal Life

Sania Mirza (Urdu: سانیا مِرزا; born 15 November 1986), is an Indian tennis player. She started her tennis career in 2003, and is currently one of the high ranked players in India. In 2004 she was awarded the prestigious Arjuna award by the Indian government

Mirza was born to a sports journalist, Imran Mirza and her mother Nasima in Mumbai. She was brought up in Hyderabad in a devout Muslim family. Mirza began playing tennis at the age of six, turning professional in 2003. She was trained by her father, as well as her other family members. She went to Nasr school in Hyderabad and later graduated from St. Mary's College.

Controversy

As a Muslim, she has garnered criticism from some Orthodox Islamic groups, as her attire allegedly did not conform to Islamic dress codes. According to one report published September 8, 2005, an unnamed Islamic scholar had issued a fatwa, saying that her attire is contrary to what is permitted by Islam. A further report published the next day on this fatwa elaborated that Mirza was unfazed by the comments. Large numbers of Muslim clerics protested her attire, accusing her of being a "corrupting influence on the youth." She has been widely attacked and vilified in Islamist circles, including a cleric named Haseeb-ul-hasan Siddiqui who said "The dress she wears on the tennis courts…leaves nothing to the imagination, She will undoubtedly be a corrupting influence.". Islamist groups such as Jamiat-ulema-e-Hind allegedly threatened to disrupt her tennis matches, following which the Calcutta police had to tighten security measures to protect her. Mirza's doctor received threatening letters demanding that he cease to treat her since she was allegedly dishonoring Islam. Sania Mirza herself a Shia Muslim from Vijaynagar, also attracted a response from the Major Shia Organization in India, The All-India Shia Muslim Personal Law Board. The Board disapproved the edict issued by some Muslim clerics on dresses worn by Indian teenage tennis sensation Sania Mirza while playing and asked them not to meddle in [the] sports arena. However Mirza is a practicing Muslim who prays fives times a day, and tries to fast during Ramadan.

In 2006, some newspapers reported that Mirza declined from playing with an Israeli tennis player Shahar Pe'er for fear of violent protests from India's Muslim clerics and their opposition to the existence of Israel. However a year later (i.e. in 2007), she teamed up with Pe'er for the 2007 WTA Tour of Stanford, California. Mirza said in January 2008 that she considered quitting the sport because of undue controversy surrounding her actions. Mirza was pictured resting her feet during a press conference at the 2008 Hopman Cup, with an Indian flag in close proximity. She faced possible prosecution under the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act after a private citizen complained. Mirza protested that, "I love my country, I wouldn't be playing Hopman Cup otherwise", and said that she meant no disrespect. On February 4, 2008, Mirza said that she would stop appearing in tennis tournaments held in India, starting with the 2008 Bangalore Open the following month, citing the series of controversies and upon advice by her manager.

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