CHENNAI: The Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI), following its executive committee meeting in New Delhi on Wednesday, plans to send a letter to 11Sports, promoters of the Ultimate Table Tennis league, for discussion on important matters.
Sources in the TTFI said the letter will be sent on Thursday or Friday with the meeting expected after Independence Day. Federation officials are not happy that 11Sports got a major share of the credit in conducting the UTT.
Some are also in favour of a rethink on the sponsorship policy.
“We had signed a 10-year deal with 11Sports. So we can’t rush to conclusions. After the holidays, we will meet and hopefully, the future will be sorted so that table tennis continues to grow,” a TTFI source close to developments told SS.
Among points discussed at the executive committee meeting were the recently-concluded UTT as well as sponsorship of national ranking tournaments. The meeting was chaired by TTFI president Dushyant Chautala.
The main point is the title-sponsorship amount for domestic events. For sub-junior tournaments, 11 Sports provides Rs 6 lakh, Rs 7.5 lakh for junior meets and Rs 10 lakh for senior events.
According to the source, a senior meet requires Rs 1 crore and most of it has to be arranged by state associations. In case they fail to do so, TTFI provides the rest.When asked, TTFI secretary general MP Singh elaborated on the subject. “The amount needs to be revised by a certain per cent, say 10 per cent, every year.
Also, if the state association manages to find a sponsor who is willing to pay a higher amount than the promoters, their name should be displayed as co-sponsors. This point needs clarification, especially with regards to the future of domestic tournaments,” he said.
Most members of TTFI were also not happy with the way the UTT completely ignored the TTFI.
“We have to agree that the tournament was presented really well and the event managed to attract the interest of the public. 11Sports deserves credit for that. However, as the governing body of the sport in the country, we felt our contribution was ignored. This needs rectification,” the member added.
During the course of the event, players and officials had pointed out that the length of matches was not conducive for the TV audience and issues pertaining to the gap between points was quite complicated. These will also be discussed.
“Logistical and technical issues relating to UTT are also part of the agenda. We have to ensure that this not a one-off competition and continues to attract top-class talent each year.”
Another point that was mooted internally was that only winners of various inter-institutional meets should be invited to the national team championships.