Mirza's Response to Muslim Fundamentalists

Some awfully tough, and I think unfair, comments from Matthew Cronin at tennisreporters.net today about Sania Mirza:

"I like Sania Mirza quite a bit, even though she's a bit too arrogant for her Top 40-ranking. But the 19-year-old has to know that as a Muslim from Hindu-led India, she's going to be dealing with religious issues for the rest of her life, including her fashion choices. She's a national hero in short skirts, and the Islamic fundamentalists do not want her to exert any real influence on other young women who might get "heretical" ideas about dressing the way they want to.

To her credit, Sania has stuck up for the positive principles of her religion. But, the fact is, there are numerous negative ones, such as the existence of extremists who have declared a "fatwa" on her. That's when it's either time to stand up and say that your religious opponents are wrong and don't represent the thinking of many young Muslims, or you leave that religion. You cannot exists in the middle in these disputes, nor can you ignore them by saying "I'm an athlete and I don't want to discuss politics." Politics exist in every part of life, like it or not."

She's all of 18 years old and she's supposed to have reached this level of political consciousness? Not to mention, the fatwa was only issued a week or so ago. What is the appropriate amount of time one is permitted to allow to pass before one figures out how to respond to having a fatwa declared on you? I suspect it may be more than a week.

It's easy for someone on the sidelines to declare she should take a stand, but she's the one who would actually have to live with the consequences of that. Give her and her family time to sort out how to deal with this totally unfair situation that she, through no fault of her own, finds herself in.