Indian women’s cricket team captain Harmanpreet Kaur and former India men’s cricket team captain Rohit Sharma will receive the Padma Shri award, whereas Indian tennis legend Vijay Amritraj has been conferred with the Padma Bhushan award.
The Padma Awards were announced on Sunday (January 25).
Amritraj is the only sportsperson to receive the Padma Bhushan award in 2026. The Padma Bhushan is India’s third-highest civilian honour, whereas the Padma Shri is the fourth-highest.
Apart from Rohit and Harmanpreet, former India pacer Praveen Kumar and Indian women’s hockey team goalkeeper Savita Punia will also receive the Padma Shri award. And they will be joined by Baldev Singh, Bhagwandas Raikwar and K Pajanivel. Former wrestling coach Vladimer Mestvirishvili
was given the Padma Shri posthumously.
Padma Awards 2026: Sportspersons Honoured
| PLAYER | SPORT | AWARD |
| Vijay Amritraj | Tennis | Padma Bhushan |
| Rohit Sharma | Cricket | Padma Shri |
| Harmanpreet Kaur | Cricket (W) | Padma Shri |
| Praveen Kumar | Cricket | Padma Shri |
| Vladimer Mestvirishvili (from Georgia) | Wrestling (coach), Posthumous | Padma Shri |
| K Pajanivel | Silambattam (ancient Tamil weapon-based martial art) | Padma Shri |
| Savita Punia | Hockey (W) | Padma Shri |
| Baldev Singh | Hockey (women’s coach) | Padma Shri |
| Bhagwandas Raikwar | Arts / Sports (specifically Bundeli war art and training) | Padma Shri |
72-year-old Amritraj, who currently resides in California, United States, reached the Wimbledon and US Open quarterfinals in 1973. In 1974, he again made it to the quarters of the US Open and played the last-eight match of the Wimbledon Championships in 1981 again. He was awarded the Padma Shri award in 1983.
Memorbable year for Harmanpreet
Harmanpreet, who is the captain of the Indian women’s cricket team, led the Women in Blue to their maiden ICC title in November 2025. Under her leadership, India defeated South Africa by 52 runs on November 2, 2025, in Navi Mumbai to become women’s ODI World Cup winners for the first time in their history.
Rohit, on the other hand, won two ICC trophies as the captain of the Indian men’s cricket team. He led the Men in Blue to the T20 World Cup title win in 2024, and in 2025, India won the ICC Champions Trophy title under his leadership.
