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Indian pace spearhead Mohammed Shami on Tuesday, January 9th received the prestigious Arjuna Award for his exploits at the ODI World Cup 2023 in India. The 33-year-old Indian veteran, who has been a vital cog in the lineup, received the award from President of India, Droupadi Murmu at the Rashtrapati Bhawan in Delhi.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had recommended Shami’s name after he finished as the highest wicket-taker at the ODI World Cup 2023. The 33-year-old, who has taken 229 wickets in 64 Tests so far in his career, expressed gratitude for receiving the Arjuna Award.
“This award is a dream, life passes and people are not able to win this award. It’s a matter of great joy and I’m feeling proud. A lot of individuals remain mere spectators as they watch others win these awards throughout their lives. It’s a dream that remains unfulfilled for many,” Shami said on being nominated as the recipient of the prestigious award.
Apart from Shami, para-archer Sheetal Devi was also conferred with the Arjuna Award on Tuesday. It is to be noted that Devi, who won two gold medals at the Hangzhou Asian Games, is the first international para-archer without upper limbs. She recently became the first Indian archer to win World Archery Awards.
List of National Sports Awardees:
Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award 2023: Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy (Badminton)
Arjuna Award: Ojas Pravin Deotale (Archery), Aditi Gopichand Swami (Archery), M Sreeshankar (Athletics), Parul Chaudhary (Athletics), Mohameed Hussamuddin (Boxing), R Vaishali (Chess), Mohammed Shami (Cricket), Anush Agarwalla (Equestrian), Divyakriti Singh (Equestrian Dressage), Diksha Dagar (Golf), Krishna Bahadur Pathak (Hockey), Pukhrambham Sushila Chanu (Hockey), Pawan Kumar (Kabaddi), Ritu Negi (Kabaddi), Nasreen (Kho-Kho), Pinki (Lawn Bowls), Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar (Shooting), Esha Singh (Shooting), Harinder Pal Singh Sandhu (Squash), Ayhika Mukherjee (TT), Sunil Kumar (Wrestling), Antim (Wrestling), Naorem Roshibina Devi (Wushu), Sheetal Devi (Para Archery), Ajay Kumar Reddy (Blind Cricket), Prachi Yadav (Para Canoeing).
Dronacharya Award: Lalit Kumar (Wrestling), RB Ramesh (Chess), Mahaveer Prasad Saini (Para Athletics), Shivendra Singh (Hockey), Ganesh Prabhakar (Mallakhamb)
Lifetime Category: Jaskirat Singh Grewal (Golf), E Bhaskaran (Kabaddi) and Jayanta Kumar Pushilal (TT).
Dhyan Chand Award: Manjusha Kanwar (Badminton), Vineet Kumar Sharma (Hockey), Kavitha Selvaraj (Kabaddi).
