Indian tennis players’ long-standing stand-off with their sports body sees a fresh new chapter with Rohan Bopanna taking on the All India Tennis Association for his Arjuns Awards miss. Bopanna has released a scathing statement blaming the All India Tennis Association (AITA) for not nominating his name for India’s big sporting award.
"I am calling out to the lack of professionalism and efficiency by AITA for not sending my nomination for the Arjuna Award before the deadline. I have witnessed many such excuses for the past decade (while I was eligible and my record didn't falter) and then too, have never stood for it," says Bopanna in his statement.
The deadline to send applications for the Arjuna Award ended on 30 April and the AITA only sent Bopanna’s name on 14 June, after he won the French Open mixed doubles title with Gabriela Dabrowski.
The tennis federation had instead chosen Saketh Myneni, winner of two medals at the 2014 Incheon Asian Games as their nominee for the Arjuna Award. The selection committee chose to stick to his name, making no exception for the late entry.
In the past, Bopanna has been nominated several times but his application has always been rejected.
"We professional tennis players put in a lot to bring laurels to our country. And no one could question otherwise. However, it is when the system (the Tennis Association in this case) functions sloppily that is not only disrespectful but also robs one of the hope of a deserving acknowledgment," Bopanna added in his statement sent to this website on 5 August.
AITA’s Answer
AITA Secretary General Hironmoy Chatterjee replied to the doubles’ specialists allegations, saying Bopanna’s achievements till the cut-off date simply were not greater than Myneni’s, specially keeping in mind his name has been overseen by the awards’ selection committee all these years.
"AITA did not send Rohan Bopanna's application for Arjuna award this year since his application was getting rejected all these years because he has not won any medals for the country at the Asian Games. We knew why it was being rejected all the time," Chatterjee told PTI.
Bopanna had skipped the Incheon Asian Games along with Somdev Devvarman and veteran Leander Paes as the Coorgi had points to defend on the professional tour.
Why Nominate Bopanna In June Then?
Bopanna in his letter had also slammed the AITA saying they “gained a lot of traffic in the media for claiming they would be nominating me for the Arjuna Award this year and for it to not materialise due to the disorder in the ‘Order’ makes me question this so much more.”
Asked why AITA decided to send his entry in June, Chatterjee claimed, "I took a chance since it was a Grand Slam. It's like winning a world championship. So, we thought let's send it now."
Points are given for winning medals at the World Championship/World Cup, Asian Games, Commonwealth Games, Asian Championships (biennial) and Commonwealth championships (biennial) while evaluating the applications by the committee.
Bopanna’s Turn in 2018?
Chatterjee said winning the Grand Slam title at Roland Garros makes him eligible for next year and they will certainly nominate him.
"We do feel he now meets the criteria after winning the mixed doubles of the French Open. AITA will again try for him next year," he said.
The selection committee considered performances between January 2013 and December 2016 and Bopanna has achieved some tremendous results in this period but only on the Pro Circuit, not while representing India in a multi-disciplinary events.
He reached a career-high rank of three in the world in July 2013 and bagged nine ATP titles, including two Master series (Madrid, 2015 and Monte Carlo, 2017).
He finished fourth at the Rio Olympic Games with Sania Mirza in the mixed doubles and that could have given some weightage to his nomination had AITA sent his application.
Compared to Bopanna, Myneni may not have been very successful on the Tour but has logged enough points for his medal-winning performances at Incheon Games.
(With inputs from PTI)
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