Brief by Shorts91 Newsdesk / 04:27am on 26 Oct 2026,Monday Sports
Indian tennis stars Sania Mirza and Mahesh Bhupathi have filed nominations for the Sports Person of Outstanding Merit (SOM) elections in the All India Tennis Association (AITA), ahead of the November 7 polls. Their entry signals a push for greater representation of prominent players in the federation’s administration. Leander Paes, whose presidential candidature was backed by the Bengal Tennis Association, is absent from the nominees’ list. His omission effectively ends his prospects of contesting for the top post under the current eligibility rules. Paes, the only player in Tier I of the 40-member roster, needed to qualify through the SOM process because he lacked the required tenure as an office-bearer. (PC: PTI)
