India’s star pacer Mohammad Shami is set to receive a prestigious Arjuna Award for his incredible performance in 2023.
Arjuna Award, India's second-highest sporting honour, is bestowed upon athletes who consistently exhibit exceptional skills, sportsmanship, and dedication to their respective sports. Shami is the only cricketer among 26 athletes to receive an award in 2023.
While Shami was brilliant throughout the year, he proved to be a different beast altogether in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023. The right-arm quick finished the showpiece tournament as the leading wicket-taker, taking 24 wickets from seven matches at an incredible average of 10.70 with three five-wicket hauls.
Overall, Shami claimed 43 wickets in 19 ODIs while he picked up 13 wickets from four Tests this year.
Besides Shami, the athletes selected for this year's Arjuna award include hockey players Krishan Bahadur Pathak and Sushila Chanu, archers Ojas Pravin Deotale and Aditi Gopichand Swami, boxer Mohammad Hussamuddin, chess player R Vaishali, golfer Diksha Dagar, shooters Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar and Esha Singh, wrestlers Antim Panghal and Sunil Kumar, paddler Ayhika Mukherjee and para archer Sheetal Devi, among others.
The awards will be conferred on the athletes by President Droupadi Murmu at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on January 9, 2024.
Arjuna Awards for 2023: Ojas Pravin Deotale (archery), Aditi Gopichand Swami (archery), Murali Sreeshankar (athletics), Parul Chaudhary (athletics), Mohameed Hussamuddin (boxing), R Vaishali (chess), Mohammed Shami (cricket), Anush Agarwalla (equestrian), Divyakriti Singh (equestrian dressage), Diksha Dagar (golf), Krishan Bahadur Pathak (hockey), 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 (table tennis), Sunil Kumar (wrestling), Antim (wrestling), Naorem Roshibina Devi (wushu), Sheetal Devi (para archery), Illuri Ajay Kumar Reddy (blind cricket), Prachi Yadav (para canoeing).
(With PTI Inputs)
