R Ashwin, Mithali Raj to be nominated by BCCI for Khel Ratna; Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Jasprit Bumrah for Arjuna

India women’s captain Mithali Raj and ace Test spinner Ravichandran Ashwin are set to be nominated by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna – the country’s highest sporting honour.

The BCCI additionally nominated senior batsman Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul and fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah for the Arjuna award. “No women cricketer has been nominated for Arjuna. Mithali’s name has been recommended for Khel Ratna,” a BCCI official told PTI on Wednesday.

Considered one of the most successful women cricketers of all time, 38-year-old Mithali completed 22 years in international cricket last week. She is the all-time highest run scorer in women’s ODIs with 7170 runs. Mithali won the Arjuna in 2003 and was conferred the Padma Shri in 2015.

Ashwin, meanwhile, has been an integral part of the Indian Test team for nearly a decade. With 417 wickets, he is India’s fourth highest wicket taker of all time in Tests and the fourth Indian to take more than 400 wickets in the longest format. Ashwin won the Arjuna Award in 2014.

India’s limited overs vice-captain Rohit Sharma was among a record five Khel Ratna recipients last year.

The Sports Ministry had first announced that it is inviting nominations for the National Sports Awards on May 20. While the initial deadline for the submission of nominations was June 21, it was extended to June 28 earlier this month.

Till 2019, applicants needed recommendations to be able to apply but the condition was waived off last year as the COVID-19 lockdown prevented smooth movement of people.

Last year, 74 recipients were bestowed with the awards. The prize money was also increased significantly with the Khel Ratna awardees receiving Rs 25 lakh, Arjuna awardees Rs 15 lakh, Dronacharya (Lifetime) awardees Rs 15 lakh, and Dhyanchand winners Rs 10 lakh.