Sania Mirza may be nominated for Khel Ratna

Following Sania Mirza’s Wimbledon doubles conquest with partner Martina Hingis last week, the sports ministry has plans to recommend the 28-year-old tennis star for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, the country’s highest sporting honour. Sania, who rose to the world No. 1 doubles rank in April this year, has not personally applied for the award, sources told TOI. “Sania has not applied for the Khel Ratna but as per rules, if the ministry feels so, it can recommend deserving athletes for the award. The sports ministry is considering nominating Sania given her performance this year,” sources said on Friday.

Sania, who was conferred with the Arjuna Award in 2004 and Padma Shri in 2006, had won a gold in mixed doubles with Saketh Myneni and a bronze in women’s doubles with Prarthana Thombare at the Incheon Asian Games. The Hyderabad girl also won the US Open mixed doubles with Brazil’s Bruno Soares last year.

Sports secretary Ajit Sharan, however, said it was too early to comment on developments.

It is learnt that a total of nine athletes, including Dipika Pallikal (squash), Seema Antil (discus throw), Vikas Gowda (discus throw), Sardar Singh (hockey), Tintu Luka (athletics), Abhishek Verma (ar chery), Paralympic highjumper Girisha HN, and last year’s applicants PV Sindhu (badminton) and Jeev Milkha Singh (golf) have applied for the Khel Ratna.

Every year the ministry selects one sportsperson for the award, though rules have been relaxed twice in the past 12 years in Olympic Games years – in 2008 (Mary Kom, Vijender Singh and Sushil Kumar) and 2012 (Yogeshwar Dutt and Vijay Kumar).