After the Sunni Ulema Board issued a fatwa against any couple living under the same roof before marriage, tennis star Sania Mirza and Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Malik tied the knot at a hurriedly arranged ceremony here on Monday.



The wedding was a closed-door affair with only immediate family members of Shoaib, 28, and Sania, 23, being present along with two witnesses from either side.




"The nikah has been performed. Please pray for the happiness of the couple," Sania's spokesperson Richa Naik told the media waiting outside the Taj Krishna.




While a lavish reception would be held in the same hotel on April 15, "there is also a mehendi ceremony on Tuesday and sangeet on Wednesday", she added.



Decked in a bridal wear, Sania left home at 11 am, accompanied by father Imran Mirza, mother Nasima and younger sister Aanam
.


The family first moved to Hotel Taj Deccan, from where just before the wedding, they moved to hotel Taj Krishna where Shoaib, his mother, sister and other relatives had booked themselves in.




Shoaib, wearing a black sherwani, was seen receiving some guests but disappeared as the Mirzas arrived. "They had asked for additional security at the hotel, fearing protesters, but everything went well," said Abid Rasool Khan, a friend of the Mirzas.




Ever since the proposed marriage of Sania and Shoaib became public, it was hit by controversies. First, Ayesha Siddiqui, another girl from Hyderabad, claimed that Shoaib had married her in 2002 and promptly filed a case of cheating against him. However, a deal was negotiated through some prominent Muslim leaders for a divorce.



Shoaib and his family members quietly left Sania's house late on Sunday and checked into Taj Krishna, it was decided to get the couple married off soon before another controversy cropped up.