January 22, 2024
ISLAMABAD – Indian tennis champion Sania Mirza says she and cricketer Shoaib Malik have been divorced “for a few months now”, a day after he announced his marriage to actor Sana Javed on Instagram.
Mirza and Malik were married in April 2010 with wedding ceremonies held in both Pakistan and India. The couple welcomed their first child in 2018.
“Sania has always kept her personal life away from the public eye. However, today the need has arisen for her to share that Shoaib and she have been divorced for a few months now. She wishes Shoaib well for his new journey ahead!” read a statement posted by Mirza’s father Imran.
“At this sensitive period of her life, we would also like to request all fans and well-wishers to refrain from indulging in any speculation and to respect her need for privacy.”
Before this, Mirza never addressed rumours of her divorce. She did, however, post several cryptic messages on Instagram about marriage. She and Malik were both spotted at their son Izhaan’s fifth birthday party in Dubai a few months earlier.
Malik and the Aye Musht-E-Khaak actor announced their marriage on Instagram Saturday morning, to the shock of social media. Javed was previously married to singer Umair Jaswal. Neither party had, at the time of the announcement, publicly confirmed their respective divorces.