We all have had our fair share of celebrity crushes, especially on a star sports personality. Be it cheering them from sidelines or while watching a live match on television, a fan shares a special with their idol. In fact, there have been times when overenthusiastic fans went on to propose marriage to their dream ‘lovers’. And it most definitely made a memorable sight to watch, especially if it’s recorded on camera. Remember tennis legend Steff Graf’s sassy reply to her admirer who shouted, “Steffi, will you marry me?” in the middle of her Wimbledon semi-finals match. And, who can forget the marriage proposal for Indian cricket captain, Virat Kohli by a Pakistani police officer? There have also been times when fans have gone overboard in professing their love like in case of former Indian skipper, Mahendra Singh Dhoni who was kissed by a lady in public! However, today we look at some of the best moments of huge sporting icons receiving sweet marriage proposals from their fans.

1. Steffi Graf

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VzD_IwDC5tc

One of the biggest names in women’s tennis, Steffi Graf was famously proposed by a man at 1996 Wimbledon. The German ace was ready to serve against her semi-finals opponent, Kimiko Date when this admirer of Graf shouted – Steffi, will you marry me? Yes, like all of us, the tennis legend broke into a smile, but it was her reply that floored the spectators at SW19. She cheekily responded by asking, “How much money do you have?” Steffi later went on to win the 6-2 2-6 6-3 and eventually the Wimbledon title that year. Graf married American tennis legend, Andre Agassi in 2001 and have two children.

2. Maria Sharapova

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IiZvbrgnobE

Maria Sharapova continues to be the golden girl of tennis. Despite having a career hiccup due to the doping scandal, the 30-year-old continues to enjoy a massive fan following across the globe. On several occasions, the player with the supermodel looks was proposed by her fans. Recently, a male fan asked Maria to marry him while she was playing Cagla Buyukakcay in an exhibition game in Istanbul. The Russian tennis star who was serving at the time nodded followed by hushed up ‘maybe’ resulting in an exhilarating atmosphere. This response was quite unlike old ‘Ice Princess’ Sharapova who had outrightly refused a fan’s proposal at BNP Paribas Open in 2012.

Earlier, she had refused outrightly!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VMRwiNKOGSw

3. Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli is TAKEN! It will take a while for us digest this harsh reality. But before the handsome Indian skipper got married to actress, Anushka Sharma, the 29-year-old received several interesting wedding proposals. One of them was from English women’s cricketer, Danielle Wyatt who tweeted, “Kholi marry me,” back in 2014. While she was trolled for getting the spelling of star Indian cricketer wrong but that didn’t stop her from meeting Virat in person. Coming to the most amusing proposal in the history of fan-idol proposals – a male cop from Pakistan was spotted holding a banner that read, “Kohli Marry Me”! WOW.

The famous proposal by Danielle Wyatt

4. Zaheer Khan

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9G-i13JPhl4

Former Indian spearhead remained one of the most good-looking cricketers since his playing days for the national side. Before he was clean bowled by maiden Sagarika Ghatge in 2017, Zaheer was among the most eligible bachelors. It was quite natural for his fans to lose their hearts to Zak and in one such instance, a female fan caught the eye of everyone for the ridiculous amount of love for him. It happened during the third and final Test match between India and Pakistan in 2005. A woman carried a placard reading, ‘Zaheer, I Love You’. She not only got everyone’s eyes on her (thanks to the lovely cameraman) but also got the star bowler acknowledge her affection. Zaheer sent a flying kiss in the lady’s direction amidst cheering stadium.

5. Rafael Nadal

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_cLnrUDohHs

Australian Open is pretty famous for their lively fans. Despite constantly sitting under the hot sun, they keep the enthusiasm alive. However, a crazy fan once left 16-time grand slam champion, Rafael Nadal startled (read: awkward) by asking for marriage. It happened during 2012 Australian Open when Rafa was playing his match against Lukas Lacko. The fan yelled out a quirky marriage proposal to the King of Clay leaving commentators and spectators bursting in laughter. However, the Spanish tennis returned the shoutout with a shy wave.

6. Novak Djokovic

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YcJL48wTcNE

Former World No. 1 is one of the most loved tennis players in the Open Era. Novak Djokovic never misses an opportunity to interact, be it with the ball boys or the spectators. During a practice session of the US Open 2012, a young boy shouted, “will you marry me?” from the sidelines. Well, it was enough for him to be invited to the court by the Serbian ace. The young lad tried few shots with the tennis superstar.

7. Mahendra Singh Dhoni

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g89zU3QDWS4

This was no marriage proposal but an ugly display of affection by a frantic fan to India’s most successful cricket captain, MS Dhoni. The incident took place in 2007, Dhoni’s early days in career when fans were floored by his rockstar long-haired flamboyant personality. This die-hard fan of MS Dhoni grabbed and kissed the stylish cricketer as he was boarding the team bus after a practice session at the Eden Gardens. Like always, the cool player maintained his composure but this hysterical behaviour on part of the fan remains a disappointing act.

Carrying banners or shouting ‘marry me’ to players is quite a norm by the devoted fans. Be it tennis, cricket or any other sports, the unconditional love showered on sports stars by their loyal followers is seriously overwhelming. However, one must understand the thin line difference between being a die-hard fan and a frenzied fan!

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 28, 2017 07:46 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).