Indian Tennis player HS Prannoy has submitted an "unconditional apology" to the Badminton Association of India (BAI) after he lashed out at the national federation for not recommending his name for Arjuna Award.
"In response to the show cause letter, the Indian elite shuttler apologised for the remarks he made about the country, the federation and any other person he may have hurt with his statement in the media and on social media platforms. BAI President Himanta Biswa Sarma has accepted the letter of apology," BAI said in a statement.
Earlier this month, Prannoy had hit out at the BAI and had questioned the selection criteria for the Arjuna Award.
The shuttler had said that the players who have won nothing have been recommended, while the players who have medals to their credit have been snubbed.
His remarks came after BAI recommended the doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty and men's singles player Sameer Verma for the Arjuna Award.
"Same old story. Guy who has Medals in CWG and Asian Championships not even recommended by Association. And guy who was not there on any of these major events recommended #waah #thiscountryisajoke," Prannoy had written in a now-deleted tweet.
With BAI implementing strict policies of disciplinary actions going forward, Pronnoy, on June 19, was asked to respond in 15 days' time on his misconduct.
BAI General Secretary Ajay Singhania said that BAI is in receipt of the letter from the shuttler.
"It was unfortunate to witness something like this but Prannoy had reached out to us and based on his submission, we hope going forward players will reach out to the federation if they have any concern," Singhania said in a statement.
