Sania Mirza: First Indian To Be Nominated For Fed Cup Heart Award

Sania Mirza has made all of us proud again. The 33-year-old tennis player on Thursday was nominated for Fed Cup Heart Award from the Asia/Oceania zone. With this, she becomes the first Indian to be nominated for this award. The competition will commence from May 1st to May 8th. In this period fans all over the world will have the chance of voting for their favourite player to make them win. Voting will be conducted online. 

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Sania Mirza, Fed Cup Heart Award nominee

Sania Mirza made a comeback to Fed Cup after four years and eventually helped India qualify for the Play-offs for the first time.“Stepping on to the court for the first time in India colours was a moment of pride for me, back in 2003. It has been an eighteen-year long journey since then and I feel extremely proud and privileged to have contributed to the success of Indian tennis,” Sania told an AITA release.

“The Fed Cup result at the Asia/Oceania tournament last month is one of the greatest achievements of my playing career. These are the moments an athlete plays for and I am grateful to the Fed Cup Heart Awards selection panel for this recognition,” she further added.

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After a two-year-long maternity break, tennis champion Mirza made a rocking comeback and lifted the WTA Hobart International trophy with partner Nadiia Kichenok, in January this year.

Other players who have qualified

In Fed Cup Heart Award’s 11th edition this year, Anett Kontaveit (Estonia) and Eleonora Molinaro (Luxembourg) have been nominated from Europe/Africa zone. From the Americas, Fernanda Contreras Gomez of Mexico and Paraguay’s Veronica Cepede Royg have been nominated. Indonesia’s Priska Madelyn Nugroho has also been nominated from the Asia/Oceania zone.

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Fed Cup Heart Award

The Fed Cup Heart award is an initiative by the ITF (International Tennis Federation). The award aims at recognizing and honouring the players who have represented their country with distinction, have shown exceptional courage on the court, and demonstrated outstanding commitment to the team during Fed Cup. The first award was given to Melanie Oudin of America in the Fed Cup finals of 2009.

“The Fed Cup result at the Asia/Oceania tournament last month is one of the greatest achievements of my playing career. These are the moments an athlete plays for and I am grateful to the Fed Cup Heart Awards selection panel for this recognition.”

Fed Cup                            

Fed Cup, known as Federation cup until 1995 is the premier international team competition in women’s tennis. It was first organised in 1963 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF).

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Saumya Tiwari is an intern with SheThepeople.TV