The Board of
Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has decided to recommend ace spinner
Ravichandran Ashwin and star batter Mithali Raj for this year’s Rajiv Gandhi
Khel Ratna Award. The cricket board has also decided to name KL Rahul, Jasprit
Bumrah and Shikhar Dhawan for the Arjuna Award.

“We had a
detailed discussion and it was decided to send in the names of Ashwin and women’s
Test and ODI skipper Mithali for the Khel Ratna. We are recommending Dhawan
again for the Arjuna while we also suggest the names of Rahul and Bumrah,” a
source close to the developments told ANI.

Earlier,
the deadline for submitting applications for the upcoming 2021 edition of the National
Sports Awards was extended by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. The initial
deadline was set for June 21.

The
nominations from eligible sportspersons, coaches and other entities were invited
for the award and were sent to the ministry via e-mail, according to a release.

Last year, Manika
Batra, Rohit Sharma Vinesh Phogat, Rani Rampal and Mariyappan Phangavelu were
recipients of the Khel Ratna Award. It was the first time in the award’s
history that five athletes received the award in the same year.

Ashwin was the highest wicket-taker in the recently-concluded inaugural World Test Championship (WTC), with 71, as India finished top of the points table. However, India were beaten by New Zealand in the rain-hit final at Southampton, as the Black Caps ended a 21-year wait for an ICC trophy. 

Meanwhile, Mithali Raj, the highest run-scorer in women’s international cricket and the only woman to score over 7,000 runs in ODIs, is currently involved in India’s tour of England. The tour includes 3 ODIs and 3 T20Is. England won the first ODI with 8 wickets to spare.