Indian Davis Cupper Rohan Bopanna and his Pakistani partner Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi won the Arthur Ashe Humanitarian Of The Year award during the ATP World Tour Finals in London for their peace message of 'Stop War Start Tennis'.
The two players have been playing with the message of 'Stop War Start Tennis' for quite some time on the Tour and in Grand Slams.
They rose to prominence by reaching the final of US Open where they ended runners-up to the legendary Mike and Bob Bryan.
While Qureshi has received this award in the past as well when he teamed up with Israel's Amir Hadad in 2002, it's a first for Bopanna.
"It's a great feeling to be here and presented with this award from our peers and the ATP. I would like to thank my family, friends and Aisam. It's been an emotional and unbelievable year for us. I want to applaud the courage and determination of the people in India. I hope this award brings reassurance of peace back home," Bopanna said.
Qureshi said, "It's a great feeling and I'd like to thank the ATP for giving us this platform to spread the message of peace throughout the world. For me, it is an unbelievably proud moment."
"To be on the same list as Andre Agassi, Stefan Edberg and Nelson Mandela is a terrific honour. We have had a great year and given a positive message about peace through our partnership on and off the court. I am very happy to have won with my best friend on tour," he added.
