AITA asks Apollo to stop ads

New Delhi, Sept. 29: The All India Tennis Association on Monday asked the Apollo Tyres tyre to stop their advertising campaign for their ‘Mission 2018’ project as it presents a "wrong" picture.

Anil Khanna, the AITA secretarty-general, insisted that their move of asking Apollo Tyres to present an audited statement for their spendings, was not to target Mahesh Bhupathi.

AITA had written a letter to Apollo Tyres in which they had requested them to give details of their ‘Mi-ssion 2018’ project as well as an audited statement of their spendings in the first year. "Our Executive Committee felt that their commercial appearing in magazine and television seem to give an impression that it is only their commitment that is going to work towards creation of a Grand Slam Champion," Khanna read from a statement at a press conference here.

"We have nothing against them but the way the advertising has been done creates wrong impressions. The way they are advertising, must stop," he said.

Last year, Apollo Tyres and Mahesh Bhupathi had joined hands for a project — Mission 2018 — in which Rs 100 crore were earmarked for spending in the next 10 years to produce an Indian Grand Slam champion by 2018. — PTI