New Delhi: The $1-million Indian Badminton League (IBL) on Monday announced its Delhi Franchise which was successfully bid and bought by Gurgaon-based, business conglomerate, Krrish Group. With this, Krrish Group, a name to reckon with in the field of distillery, breweries, construction and real estate, makes its debut in sports arena.
Speaking on the association, Amit Katyal, Owner of the Krrish Group said, “We are very excited and proud to have bid and won the franchise for the Delhi team. With badminton being one of the most popular sports in the country we had no inhibition to bid for a franchise in the Indian Badminton League and we consider ourselves lucky that we got the team that we were for targeting for. What prompted us to venture into this League was the format as it promises to create a difference for budding talent at grass root level.”
Speaking on Krrish Group’s successful bid to own the Delhi Smashers franchise, Ashish Chadha, CEO, Sporty Solutionz, the ‘Commercial Partner’ for IBL, said, “We welcome Krrish Group for making their entry into the sports community through IBL. This is a good sign as it is witnessing committed corporate like Krrish Group coming forward for the betterment and in the process striving to the take the sport a notch higher.”
Speaking on this occasion, Dr Akhilesh Das Gupta, Badminton Association of India President & MP said, “Delhi is an important centre for badminton and with excellent world class infrastructure and facilities, helps in grooming talent. Krrish Group owning the Delhi Smashers will certainly help the young talent and the game in Delhi in the future.”
Krrish Group has also appointed the legendary shuttler and former World No.1 Rashid Sidek as the Chief Coach of Delhi Smashers. The Malaysian won the Thomas Cup, an Olympic bronze medal and is regarded as one of the most uplifting sportspersons in his era. On retirement, Sidek was instrumental in motivating the new generation of Malaysian players like current world No.1 Lee Chong Wei, Wong Mew Choo and Wong Choong Hann.
Speaking on his appointment as the Chief Coach of Delhi Smashers in the 2013 IBL, Rashid Sidek said, “This is a historic moment for badminton. It will be a great challenge to bind players from different nationalities and background and I’m looking forward to the Indian Badminton League.”
The $1-million Indian Badminton League is set to launch on August 14, 2013, with some high-voltage action expected between PVP’s Hyderabad Hotshots and BOP Group’s Banga Beats. The 2013 IBL will feature six franchises and will run for 18 days. Each franchise will host a two-day leg and the League will showcase a grand total of 90 matches, providing broadcasters and in-stadia spectators with more than 100 hours of LIVE “family entertainment” which will also be viewed by a significant international audience. The matches will be held during late afternoon and evening to coincide with prime time television and providing a convenient time for the stadium audience. The LIVE IN-stadia entertainment, combined with high-octane on-court action is expected to further hook viewers onto this new adrenalin packed LIVE family entertainment format attracting a much younger fan base, which also includes women and children.
The top four franchises in the League will clash in the semifinals and the winners will meet in the grand final on August 31, which will be played out in Mumbai, for the richest prize money tournament in badminton till now. The IBL will also run the biggest school championship for badminton in India – Shuttle Express. The IBL School Programme is expected to touch five lakh children in more than 120 schools in six major cities, Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Lucknow and Pune. The Shuttle Express offers Rs 10 lakh as prize money and an opportunity to train at the world-class Pullela Gopichand Academy to the young talent.