# Sports ministry, AITA clash over excluded tennis players for Asiad 2026-08-25T14:17:04+00:00 | Sports | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 3 independent outlets The Sports Ministry has defended the exclusion of five tennis players from India's Asian Games squad, saying they were not on the All India Tennis Association (AITA) shortlist sent to the Indian Olympic Association and the Sports Authority of India. Sources told Times Now that the final squad was chosen strictly based on ranking criteria applied across 40 sports. The five omitted players are Sahaja Yamalapalli, Vaishnavi Adkar, Manas Dhamne, Prarthana Thombare and Vaidehee Chaudhari. AITA has disputed the ministry's claim. It said it had formally sought a review of the decision and pointed to a written representation to the IOA dated July 3, 2026. Secretary General Sunder Iyer said the claim that the players were not put forward was factually incorrect. Tennis great Rohan Bopanna has criticised the decision, saying players earned their place on merit and that a committee decided their fate on paper before a ball was struck. The selection criteria require singles players to be ranked in the top six in Asia and doubles players in the top eight over 12 months. The ministry said making an exception for tennis would destroy administrative integrity and trigger litigation from other sports bodies. India will send a seven-member tennis contingent to the Asian Games, starting September 19 in Nagoya, Japan. ## Indian Opinion Analysis Times Now led with the ministry's defence and ranking criteria, omitting AITA's counterclaim. Sportstar reported both sides in full, including AITA's written representation and Bopanna's sharp criticism. The neutral read is that the dispute is procedural: AITA says it forwarded the names, the ministry says it did not receive them on the formal shortlist. The document trail, including AITA's July 3 letter to the IOA, will decide which account holds. The ministry's next public response or a review by the IOA will be the concrete next step. ## Coverage Coverage: 3 sources, 1 pro-government, 2 neutral - timesnownews.com (pro government) Leads with ministry sources defending selection, no AITA counterclaim reported - sports.ndtv.com (neutral report) Short wire-style report quoting only SAI source, no AITA rebuttal - sportstar.thehindu.com (neutral report) Reports both ministry and AITA positions, with Bopanna criticism and AITA document This story was synthesised by AI from the 3 sources linked above. Updated: this story now draws on 3 sources. Last updated 2026-08-25T16:19:03+00:00. Tags: All India Tennis Association, Asian Games 2026, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Rohan Bopanna, Sumit Nagal Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/sports-ministry-defends-tennis-squad-changes-for-asian-games/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/sports-ministry-defends-tennis-squad-changes-for-asian-games/#story-in-brief How this brief was made: an AI model read the reports linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. Stance labels are editorial classifications of how each outlet framed this story, assigned by the same model, not ratings of the outlets. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/