Arjuna Award is the second-highest gallantry award in Sports and Games. It is awarded to a sportsman for their incredible contribution to the respective sport. It was first awarded in 1961 when twenty players across various sports were awarded. The first cricketer to receive the award was Salim Durani in 1961. The first female cricketer to be awarded was Shantha Rangaswamy in 1976. Many cricketers, including men and women, have been honored with the Arjuna Award. Let's see some of the youngest recipients of this award who, despite their young age, made everyone proud.
1. Kapil Dev
Kapil Dev is a former cricketer and captain of the Indian cricket team. His role in the team was that of an all-rounder with more than 5000 runs and 234 wickets in tests. He also has more than 11,000 runs in first-class cricket and 835 wickets. He was the youngest captain to lead India to their first-ever World Cup in 1983. He was the only test player to score over 600 runs and 70+ wickets in a single calendar year in 1979. He was awarded the prestigious Arjuna Award the same year. He is the youngest cricketer to get the award at the age of 20 years.
2. Sachin Tendulkar
Sachin Tendulkar is a former cricketer from India. He is one of the most successful captains of the Indian team. He holds the record for most centuries (51) in test cricket and 49 in ODI. He has the most runs in both test and ODI, with 15,000+ and 18,000+, respectively. He was awarded the Arjuna Award in the year 1994 while he was just 21 years old. He also received the highest civilian award in India- the Bharat Ratna.
3. Mithali Raj
Mithali Raj is a former Indian cricketer who served as the national team captain for 18 years between 2004 to 2022. He has the most runs in international cricket with 11,000+. She is also the first cricketer to hit seven consecutive half-centuries in ODI. She is a true inspiration for all the girls aspiring to be cricketers and break the stereotypes. He was felicitated with the Arjuna Award in the year 2003 at the mere age of 21.
4. Shantha Rangaswamy
Shantha Rangaswamy is a former Indian cricketer and one of the players when the women's team was formed in India. She led India to its first test win in November 1976 against West Indies. She was the first female cricketer to be awarded the Arjuna Award in the year 1976 while she was just 22 years old.
5. Ravi Shastri
Ravishankar Shastri is a former Indian cricketer and captain. He played international cricket for India between 1981-92 and was a part of the squad that won the 1983 World Cup. He has over 13,000 runs and 500+ wickets in first-class cricket. He holds the record for batting on all five days of a test match. He received the Arjuna Award in 1984 when he was 22 years old. He has also served as the head coach of the Indian international cricket team.
6. Smriti Mandhana
Smriti Mandhana is a cricketer who plays as a left-hand opener for India internationally. She became the third fastest cricketer by completing 2000 runs in 51 innings in November 2019. She has over 3000 runs in 77 ODIs and 2800 in 115 T20s. She has also served as the captain, sometimes in the absence of Harmanpreet Kaur. At 22, she received the Arjuna Award in the year 2018. Smriti is often considered the bright future of Women's cricket in India.
7. Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi
Nawab Mohammad Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi is a former Indian cricketer. He became the captain in 1962, succeeding Nari contractor when he was 21. He remains the youngest captain ever of India and thirst youngest in the world. He has more than 15,000 runs in first-class cricket and 2,793 runs in 46 tests, with the highest score of 203. In 1964, he was honored with the Arjuna Award when he was 23. He is the second sportsman to receive the award in the field of cricket.
8. Bishan Singh Bedi
Bishan Singh Bedi is a former left-arm spinner from India. He played 67 tests taking 266 wickets and was the captain of the Indian team for 22 tests. One of his most successful series was the 1976-77 India-New Zealand series, where he took 22 wickets at an average of 13.18. He also has the most wickets in first-class cricket (1560). He was awarded the Arjuna Award in 1969 at 23 years old.
9. Sandhya Agarwal
Sandhya Agarwal is a former Indian female cricketer to play nationally from 1984-1995. She hit four centuries with the top-most score of 190 (against England). She played 13 tests scoring 1110 runs, and 21 ODIs, scoring 567 runs. For her appreciable service to cricket, she received the Arjuna Award in 1986, within two years of her debut at 23.
10. Mohammad Azharuddin
Mohammad Azharuddin is a former captain of the Indian cricket team. He scored a century in his debut test against England. He played 99 tests hitting 22 centuries with a batting average of 45. Under his captaincy, India won the 1990-91 and 1995 Asia Cups and made it to the semi-finals of the 1996 World Cup. He has 9,378 and 15,855 runs in ODI and first-class cricket, respectively. In 1986, he received the Arjuna Award, the second most prestigious award in sports.
