Sania sparks gender debate

[1]

When everybody thought the inane tennis war between stalwarts of the game was over, there came another shocker. Ace tennis player Sania Mirza accused the All India Tennis Association (AITA) of using her as “bait” to pacify Leander Paes.

In a statement she said, “What I find disillusioning is the humiliating manner in which I was put up as bait to try and pacify one of the disgruntled stalwarts of Indian tennis.”
She felt the entire episode reeked of “male chauvinism” and that she had been offered as compensation to partner one of the feuding champions to lure him into agreeing to play with a male partner he does not wish to play with.
She added, “This kind of blatant humiliation of Indian womanhood needs to be condemned even if it comes from the highest controlling body of tennis in our country.”
While she doesn’t want to put the country’s pride at stake and is happy to play with anyone the Association has paired her with, such a callous attitude has hurt Sania. And she’s not alone. Women from various walks of life agree that it’s always a woman who ends up compromising.
Art director Boishali Sinha Massot says that not just tennis or any other sport, but women have to go through similar situations in all fields. “Being a woman, people expect you to do what they want you to do, it happens more within a family. But then you should have the grit to live life on your terms. I have done things my way. At times I’ve been under-estimated but I’ve always made it a point to reply with twice the force that I was under-estimated by,” she says.
Some like politician Vani Tripathi find the entire issue juvenile. She lashes out at the AITA for the way they handled the situation. “Instead of making them sit in a room and talk to each other, they have made a joke out of it,” she says as she firmly points out that she stands by what Sania has said.
Vani thinks that Sania has become a “by the way” person just because XYZ decided not to play with Leander Paes. “The AITA has overlooked who she is, what she has done, where she stands and every glory she has brought to the country in the past. She’s being made to look like a zero. Gender has again crept in. Women have to go through hell both in their personal and professional lives. You are always judged in everything you do. She is a sensible person and doesn’t blurt out things just like that. If she has spoken, there’s a point to be noted,” exclaims Vani.
However, there are some who think that there’s always an option.
Nadia Haridass, one of the top women players of the equestrian sport, says that if Sania has suffered the only one to be blamed is her. “Knowing the situation, she should have spoken up earlier if she didn’t want to be taken for granted. All of us have a choice today. She should not have become prey to the politics that were being played in the first place. She should have reacted in time and should not have let herself become ‘bait’,” concludes Nadia.