An update on this story. "Mirza plays down Peer pairing," by Pritha Sarkar for Reuters:
LONDON, June 28 (Reuters) - India's Sania Mirza hopes her decision to renew her doubles partnership with Israel's Shahar Peer at Wimbledon does not stir up another religious storm.
"We're playing tennis, we're not making statements. We're just here to play tennis and we're here to perform and be the best we can be," the Indian number one said on Thursday.
Me and Shahar are playing just like the way me and (Eva) Birnerova played the French Open, just like the way I played with anyone else the last six weeks. It doesn't make any statement."
The last time Mirza, a Muslim, joined forces with Peer at the 2005 Japan Open, their association was short-lived.
Under pressure from militants furious over a Muslim and a Jew playing together, Mirza called for some time out.
Mirza has also had a fatwa issued against her for wearing "revealing" clothing at matches.
She hopes their second stab at success will be remembered more for their on-court exploits.
"We've grown up together. We're great friends. So we said, why not?" said Mirza, who comes from the southern Indian city of Hyderabad.
"We were both very lucky to find each other because it's someone who suits each other's game. I have a big forehand, she has a big backhand. We've done well in the past.
"We really don't care whether she's from Israel or I'm from Pakistan. At the end of the day it matters whether we win a match or not."
Doubles partnerships between Muslim and Jewish players have not gone down too well in the past.
In 2002, Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi was threatened with a suspension from Pakistan's tennis federation when he entered the Wimbledon men's doubles with Israel's Amir Hadad.
The partnership won the duo a humanitarian award from the organisers of men's tennis but Mirza does not want any similar recognition.
"I'm here to play tennis and so is she. That's the end of that. It has nothing to do with anything else," she said.
Sania Mirza is Indian, not Pakistani.
Wrathofasma--
Thanks -- fixed it. Got to thinking about the Lal Masjid clerics and such.
Interesting that though Mirza is from India, she called herself "Pakistani" in the quote in the article.
Was that an intentional statement of Islamic solidarity with India's enemy?
And of course, al-reuters never mentions directly which religion the outrage from "militants" is coming from...even though we can imply from the article that it's only the Muslim side that has a problem with the tennis partnership.
Whether Sania understands it or not, accepting an Israeli as a partner in a sporting event is making a big statement to the effect that at least some Jews, Israeli or otherwise, are equal human beings. Here, it happens to be in the context of competitive sport, as opposed to entertainment/culture, politics or science.
4infidel is right - calling herself 'Pakistani' is a strange statement for Sania to be making, particularly given that she obviously isn't a fanatical Muslimah, given her willingness to pair with a Jewess.
"She hopes their second stab at success will be remembered more for their on-court exploits."
...I wish them well...she should be wary of the stabbing that could occur....
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sania_Mirza
From her wikipedia page:
(Pictures shown, I cannot imagine why they would want to cover her up!!!!!!)
Hackles have been raised in some Islamist quarters supposedly due to her attire not being conformant to Islamic Hijab. 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.[1]. A further report published the next day on this fatwa elaborated that Sania was unfazed by the comments made by Syed Yousaf Bin, the chief patron of the Ulema Board, in Hyderabad.[2].Large numbers of Muslims clerics protested her attire, accusing her of being a "corrupting inflence on the youth"[3]She has been widely attacked and villified in radical 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."[4]. Radical Islamist groups such as Jamiat-ulema-e-Hind allegedly threatened to disrupt her tennis matches, following which the Calcutta police had to heighten security measures to protect her.[5]
In 2006, Mirza declined from playing with an Israeli tennis player Shahar Peer for fear of violent protests from India's radical Muslim clerics and their opposition to the existence of Israel.[3]
Looks like the two are off to a winning start
Well, she is a woman. As we know, it's not so much Muslim women who have a problem with everyone and everything, it's their mindless, violent and blood-drunk menfolk. Good luck to this pair.
Whether Sania understands it or not, accepting an Israeli as a partner in a sporting event is making a big statement to the effect that at least some Jews, Israeli or otherwise, are equal human beings. Here, it happens to be in the context of competitive sport, as opposed to entertainment/culture, politics or science.
Posted by: waterdragon52
yep. treating a person like a person, is a big insult to Islam.
She should tell the Muslims back home: The ape and pig ancestry of Jews give them a great back hand.
I have answers for everything.
4infidel is right - calling herself 'Pakistani' is a strange statement for Sania to be making, particularly give...
Posted by: Infidel Pride
It is not strange IP, coming from her. She belongs to the mirza family that subscribes to the thought that all of India is pakistan. Don't be fooled by the skirts that she wears, she remains a full blooded muslim. Recently she went to mecca and after her burka clad photos started coming in she just went out of the circuit and is now back again with a Jew to prove that she is a "moderate". She is not. And you won't hear her saying in any statement that she is an Indian. She is, first and foremost, a muslim.
Arjun
That's right - I stand corrected. I recall that the last time there was a hue and cry over her mini-skirts, she came out with a statement that she hoped Muslims would be inspired by her tennis, rather than her minis. Two things she could have done:
- She could have ignored the Mullahs altogether, just like some Bollywood Muslims do;
- She could have stated that she was trying to be an example to Indians, not just Muslims.
As you point out, she's never stated anywhere that she's an Indian. Besides, the hype in India over her just for going into the second round of tournaments, is ridiculous.I missed the news of her going to Mecca - any photos of her in the jilbab?
Never mind, Arjun, found it!
From the photo I just referenced:
That's soooo much better!!! I'm so relieved.Looking at the comments that were edited, rediff looks like another suck-up to Muslims.
"Besides, the hype in India over her just for going into the second round of tournaments, is ridiculous."
I'm sorry, IP but I have to disagree.
It's not just going to the second round of tournaments. It's that she's a young phenom/ sensation who is doing things that no Indian woman tennis player has ever done before. It doesn't matter that she may not consider herself Indian, if that is the case. Fact is she is from India and is recognized as such.
http://www.rediff.com/sports/2005/feb/12sania.htm
"With the crowds threatening to bring down the stadium, and much drama in the eighth game of the third and deciding set, the Indian ace beat Ukraine's Alyona Bondarenko 6-4, 5-7, 6-3 in the final of the Hyderabad Open and picked her first WTA crown."
Her first WTA crown. That isn't exactly just making the second round.
"The triumph will give the 18-year-old Indian wildcard, who created history by becoming the first Indian woman the enter the third round of a Grand Slam at the Australian Open last month,"
first Indian woman to enter the third round of a Grand Slam. Not to mention she made it to the 4th round of the US open that same year (2005) Not to mention she is India's higest ranked woman tennis player ever. The best ever for the country of a billion people, there is going to be some hype there.
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