The selection furore that has rocked Indian tennis has caught the attention of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) as well which on Saturday sought a report from the All India Tennis Association (AITA) regarding the doubles team picked for the Olympic Games.
While asking for the report, IOA made it clear that it fully acknowledges that it is the prerogative of the National Sports Federation (NSF) -- in this case AITA -- to select the team.
- Bhupathi lashes out at Paes, AITA after Olympics selection
IOA acting president Vijay Kumar Malhotra in a letter AITA Secretary General, Anil Khanna said, "Our whole focus at the moment should be to send those players/teams, which can be medal prospects and I strongly believe that we have very good chance of winning a medal in tennis this time.
"As the contingent for the London Olympics is going under IOA's banner, would like to know the full details regarding this issue," Malhotra said in a release today.
AITA picked Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi on Friday for the men's doubles event of the London Olympics, rejecting the latter's insistence on being paired with Rohan Bopanna in the mega-event next month.
After AITA announced its decision, Bhupathi lashed out at the selectors by terming his pairing with Paes for the London Olympics as "worst possible in the interest of the country".
He was also furious that AITA chose not to send two teams for the mega-event.
