The Arjuna Award has come his way after 13 years of toil in international cricket and motivated by the popularity , veteran India pacer Ishant Sharma plans to continue in top flight till the time his “body allows”.
Ishant, 31, made his international debut in both Tests and ODIs in 2007 and played his first T20I the subsequent year.
He remains an important player in Test cricket.
“I realised my passion for cricket at a really young age and since then I even have been striving to offer my 100 per cent effort day in and outing . Every step I took to enhance my game was aimed toward taking India’s name to a better level,” he said during a statement.
“Till the time my body allows, i will be able to still do so, and by God’s grace then also ,” the pacer added within the statement that he shared on his official Twitter handle.
The 31-year-old, who has played 97 Tests, 80 ODIs and 14 T20Is for India, is one among the 27 sportspersons who are honoured with the Arjuna Award this year. He, however, couldn’t attend the web ceremony thanks to his IPL commitments here.
“I sincerely thank the (sports) ministry for this recognition.
“Lastly, an enormous shout bent BCCI for giving monumental support during this journey and therefore the journey going forward. to not forget, congratulations to all or any the guy Arjuna Awardees,” he added.
Ishant is here together with his Delhi Capitals teammates for the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), which is slated to start out from September 19.
Besides Ishant, limited-overs teams vice-captain Rohit Sharma was conferred the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, the country’s highest sporting honour, while women’s team all-rounder Deepti Sharma won the Arjuna.
Ishant also congratulated the guy award winners.
“Extremely grateful and honoured to receive the #ArjunaAward! Congratulations to fellow awardees for the same! Thanks for constant support and love from all of you,” he tweeted.
