TTFI lifts Ghosh's ban, free to play in next month's Nationals

Former national champion Soumyajit Ghosh is free to return to the game after the Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) Sunday decided to revoke his suspension, handed out in March this year following allegations of rape against him by an ex-girlfriend.

"The members of Executive Board of TTFI which met here during the ongoing 11Sports 80th Junior and Youth National Championships considered his representation and rescinded the ban with immediate effect, allowing him to participate in all national and international tournaments," the TTFI said in a statement.

The withdrawal of suspension means Ghosh is eligible to participate in the Senior Nationals at Cuttack from January 4 to 9, 2019.

In March, Ghosh was accused of rape by an 18-year-old, that led to the two-time Olympian and India's youngest ever national champion hitting "rock bottom".

The allegations prompted the TTFI to provisionally suspend him, which meant the paddler was left out of India's Commonwealth Games squad in Gold Coast.

Ghosh's legal troubles finally came to an end after he married his rape accuser four months after his career nose-dived owing to the crisis.