KARACHI - Pakistan woman cricketer Sana Mir has been named among honorees for the annual Asia Game Changer Awards.
The award ceremony will take place in New York City on October 24, 2019, where Mir will receive the award along with five other women. Mir led Pakistan women’s team to gold medal wins at the Asia Games in 2010 and 2014. She recently became the world’s top-ranked bowler for one-day internationals (ODIs); and, the top wicket-taker for spinners ever among women in ODIs. She has been decorated with the Pakistani medal of excellence known as the Tamgha-e-Imtiaz, similar to the U.S. Congressional Medal of Honor; won the People’s Choice Award at the Pakistan Sports Awards; and, was recently inducted into the ICC Women’s Committee as one of three female players’ representatives to the preeminent cricket body.
“When I started in 2005, people would ask me why I’m doing this, it’s not a women’s game,” said Mir. “But now when I talk to people they say. We are so proud of the team. We want our daughters to be a part of this team. They ask how they can become a part of this team so the mentality and perception has changed.”
The Asia Society also heaped praise on Mir for excelling at one of the world’s most popular sports and inspiring millions of girls, by stating: “In a country where many women still struggle for basic rights, Mir’s success has been a lodestar. Unwilling to simply rest on her laurels, Mir is an outspoken advocate for women’s rights, working to change attitudes about women’s participation in the traditionally male-dominated sport of cricket — and beyond.”
