By Omer Farooq in Hyderabad



Sania Mirza is ranked 85 in world women's tennis

A young Indian man turned up at the home of tennis star Sania Mirza and threatened to kill himself if the tennis player did not marry him.

Mohammad Ashraf told Imran Mirza, Sania's father, that the tennis star could not marry anyone else as she "was born for me".

He also demanded that her engagement with family friend Sohrab Mirza, scheduled for Friday, be cancelled.

An alarmed Imran Mirza called the police who have taken him into custody.

He has been produced in court and remanded for a fortnight.

Mirza, 22, is one of the top ranking players. She ranks 85 in the world.

'Threatening'

In his complaint to the police, Mr Mirza says Mr Ashraf claims to have been in love with the tennis star ever since he saw her playing a match in Bangalore two years ago.

Mr Mirza has also complained that the youth had been sending text messages and making threatening calls to his daughter for some time.

Mr Ashraf arrived at Ms Mirza's home in Hyderabad city's upmarket home in Banjara Hills area on Tuesday evening accompanied by his friend Devadeesh Mohanty.

Mr Ashraf is a civil engineer from Bangalore

"How can you engage Sania to another person when she was born for me?" Mr Ashraf is reported to have asked the tennis player's father.

"He was threatening to commit suicide if Sania did not marry him," Mr Mirza told the police.

The two men have been arrested and have been charged with trespass and creating a nuisance.

Mr Ashraf has been identified as a civil engineer from Bangalore.

Hyderabad police say they have contacted their counterparts in Bangalore to find out whether Mr Ashraf is mentally sound.

It is the second time in less than a month that Mirza has hit the headlines for the wrong reason.

Last month, the Andhra Pradesh state government found that a man had secured a white ration card showing Sania Mirza as his wife.

The ration card carried photos of the tennis star.

White ration cards are meant for people living below the poverty line.