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Zaheer Abbas, often known as the ‘Don Bradman of Asia’, married Rita Luthra from India after meeting in England, crossing borders and religions for love
Rita Luthra converted to Islam to marry Zaheer Abbas. (News18 Hindi)
Often known as the “Don Bradman of Asia”, former Pakistan cricket captain Zaheer Abbas not only dazzled on the sphere together with his majestic batting but in addition scripted a love story that crossed borders. His personal life grabbed headlines when he fell in love with Rita Luthra from India, a call that led him to part ways together with his first wife.
Zaheer, who had already been married and was father to a few daughters, couldn’t resist the charm of Rita. Their story began in England in 1980, when Zaheer was playing county cricket for Gloucestershire. At the identical time, Rita was pursuing a course in interior design. The 2 met there, and as per Pakistani media reports, it was love at first sight for the batting legend.
Interestingly, each families were already connected. Zaheer Abbas’s father and Rita Luthra’s father were friends. Rita’s family had originally lived in Faisalabad but migrated to India after the Partition. This connection, coupled with their meeting within the UK, brought Zaheer and Rita closer.
With a purpose to marry Rita, Zaheer needed to take a tricky step. He divorced his first wife, Nasreen, the mother of his three daughters. Rita, too, made a life-changing decision. She converted to Islam, took the name Samina, and married Zaheer Abbas in 1988.
The couple eventually settled in Karachi. Samina went on to turn into a successful entrepreneur, running a flourishing interior design business value crores. Together, they’ve a daughter named Sonal. Despite the controversies of the past, Zaheer and Samina are said to be living a comfortable married life.
Zaheer Abbas just isn’t the one Pakistani cricketer whose personal life was intertwined with India. Former cricketer Mohsin Khan married Bollywood actress Reena Roy, while Shoaib Malik tied the knot with tennis star Sania Mirza. Nonetheless, each those marriages resulted in separation. Then again, fast bowler Hasan Ali’s marriage with Indian-origin Samia Arzoo from Mewat, Haryana, continues to face strong.
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