Bhubaneswar, Dec. 9: A new rule introduced by Bhubaneswar District Tennis Association (BDTA) to bar coaches from taking part in the All-Odisha Nalco Open Tennis Tournament has sparked off a controversy even before the tourney has begun.
Known as one of the most significant events in the tennis calendar of the state, the tournament, which gets under way at the Kalinga Stadium on Friday, will not allow any coaches to take part this year, one of the organisers has said.
One of the oldest tennis championships in the state, the tournament is in its 17th edition. It has been sponsored by public sector enterprise Nalco since the beginning. The new rule to forbid coaches from playing is unheard of in international 'open' events.
"The coaches are more interested in winning the prize money and the mementos at the tournament. They do not train the players properly during the event. Also, they use their success in the tournament to attract more students. We have decided to stop this practice and hence this year coaches will not be allowed," said Suresh Mohapatra, bureaucrat and president of BDTA.
Since many successful players have started training younger players out of personal interest, the identification of coaches and non-coaches could be difficult. When asked, the organising members said that they knew whom to bar from playing in the event.
The players, as well coaches, are unhappy with the decision. According to them, the move has been introduced out of personal grudge against a few coaches.
"I think it's an absolute insane justification given by the BDTA that barring coaches will promote young talents. They are totally ignorant of the fact that in the past couple of years many young players have won the tournament and this proves that they have talent to win in a very competitive and fair environment. And if they are so interested in promoting young talents, they should explain how many players they have sponsored or what development they have done for the sport till now. As coaches we can play All India Tennis Association (AITA) ranking tournaments and we are officially allowed to do so. Even we have AITA rankings and points that proves we are still players," said tennis player and coach Ajay Nishank, who is in his late thirties.
Powerful bureaucrats are making their own rules without following the international guidelines, said another coach Santosh Mallik, 32. Coaches Ajay, Santosh, Manoj Kumar Naik, Farhan Ali, Lalit Dash and many young players have decided to write to the Nalco, the BDTA and the Odisha Tennis Association, the apex body for the sport in the state, against this new rule.
"Ajay Kumar Nishank has been playing in the finals of this tournament for 12 consecutive years. Disowning players like him is a shame for Odisha tennis. The prize money for individual titles is hardly Rs 4,000 to Rs 6,000. It is a false pretence that the organisers are trying to save the prize money for young players since tennis training needs a lot more and the BDTA has never stood by any promising player when they required financial support," said state champion Chinmay Pradhan.
Young players said that the tournament did not add points or rank and hence was more of a tennis festival for the fraternity where all came to watch a good game and interact. Many players such as Pradhan and Shilpi Swarupa Das are not taking part in the event to protest against the rule.
