Mirza, 21, has opted out of India’s leading tennis event – next month’s £305,000 Bangalore Open – saying it was becoming impossible to deal with the controversies.

“Every time I have played in India there has been some kind of problem so we just thought it was better not to play at this point,” she said.

Mirza’s popularity has rivalled cricketers in India since she became the first Indian woman to win a tour event in 2005 and the articulate player enjoys many commercial endorsements. She is ranked 29th in the world.

The Muslim player has also had to pay a price for her popularity, however, and has been at the centre of a series of controversies.

She faced an edict from a Muslim group for playing in normal tennis attire soon after her rise to prominence.

In December, she apologised to Mosque officials in hometown Hyderabad following a police complaint for trespass after she shot an advertisement film in its premises.

India’s top tennis star, Sania Mirza, will boycott all tournaments in the country this year after a series of off-court controversies, disappointing officials and millions of fans.