Asian Games tennis row deepens as AITA rebuts SAI's omission allegation
The All India Tennis Association (AITA) has rejected claims it failed to submit the names of excluded Asian Games tennis players to the IOA, with TimesofIndia.com accessing a July 3 letter seeking their inclusion. AITA argued event-specific selections would maximise medal prospects, but the Sports Ministry has stood by its strict Asia-ranking criteria despite criticism from ex-player Rohan…
The All India Tennis Association (AITA) has rejected claims by the Sports Authority of India (SAI) that it failed to submit the names of five tennis players who were left out of India's final Asian Games squad. According to SAI, the omitted players - Manas Dhamne, Sahaja Yamalapalli, Vaishnavi Adkar, Vaidehee Chaudhari and Prarthana Thombare - did not appear on the shortlist forwarded by AITA to the Indian Olympic Association (IOA).
However, AITA denies this allegation and states that the merits of each player, including their recent history and performance, were outlined in a letter sent to IOA CEO Raghuram Iyer on July 3. The letter, accessed by TimesofIndia.com, mentions the qualifications of each player, arguing that India should field its strongest possible tennis contingent to maximize medal opportunities.
AITA also highlighted India's strong representation in doubles events, with three pairs already within the top-eight accepted entries. The tennis federation requested the IOA to reassess the exclusions on an event-specific basis and approve all six players to enhance India's medal prospects.
Written by urgent.news from Times of India's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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