Even as son-in-law Shoaib Malik's nomination in the preliminary 35-man squad for next month's Asia Cup and tour of England drew celebrations in the Mirza household, there was one disappointed soul therein
Even as son-in-law Shoaib Malik's nomination in the preliminary 35-man squad for next month's Asia Cup and tour of England drew celebrations in the Mirza household, there was one disappointed soul therein. And that was none other than Shoaib's wife and India tennis ace Sania Mirza.u00a0
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| Na jaao saiyyan: Sania Mirza and Shoaib Malik |
Shoaib's potential selection in the Pakistan squad means he will be away from May right through June (Asia Cup is from June 15-24) before going to England to play two Twenty20 matches and two Tests against Australia followed by four Tests, five one-dayers and two T20 games against England. This means that he won't be by Sania's side during the all-important Wimbledon (May 23 -- June 6) leaving the first lady of Indian tennis a bit low. "Sania is very excited for her husband even though she is a little disappointed that he may not be able to be with her at Wimbledon," Sania's father Imran Mirza told MiD DAY yesterday.
However, the fact that Shoaib has fought against all odds and re-emerged into the national fold after facing a one-year ban following a disastrous tour to Australia has Sania and her family no end.
"We belong to a family of sportsmen and hence understand that ups and downs are a part and parcel of one's career and life. We are all very happy with the news of Shoaib's impending comeback," said Imran.
In fact, Mirza Sr claimed he was always confident that Shoaib would return to the Pakistan side sooner rather than later. "I have a lot of faith in Shoaib -- as a cricketer and as a person. I've been confident that he'll come back into the team and I take great pride in his achievements," he said.
