Rohit Sharma and Harmanpreet Kaur are set to be awarded the prestigious Padma Shri by the Indian government as part of the Republic Day 2026 celebrations. Sharma led India to victory in the T20 World Cup in 2024 and the Champions Trophy in 2025. Harmanpreet Kaur meanwhile became the first Indian captain to lift the ICC Women's World Cup in 2025.
The Padma Shri is the fourth highest civilian honour in India behind the Bharat Ratna, Padma Vibhushan and Padma Bhushan. A total of 131 civilian awards were announced, with 113 Padma Shri awardees.
Shri Vijay Amritraj – United States of America
Shri Baldev Singh – Punjab
Shri Bhagwandas Raikwar – Madhya Pradesh
Ms. Harnamreet Kaur Bhullar – Punjab
Shri K Pajanivel – Puducherry
Shri Praveen Kumar – Uttar Pradesh
Shri Rohit Sharma – Maharashtra
Ms. Savita Punia – Haryana
Shri Vladimir Mestvirishvili (Posthumous) – Georgia
Before Harmanpreet and Rohit Sharma, 40 Indian cricketers have been awarded with the Padma Shri. Vijay Hazare was the first to be named for the honour in 1960, while Ravichandran Ashwin was felicitated last year.
Harmanpreet meanwhile is only the 4th Indian women's cricketer to be awarded the Padma Shri. Diana Edulji, Jhulan Goswami and Mithali Raj are the only previous recipients of the award.
