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Indian badminton fans can expect a galaxy of stars at the inaugural Indian Badminton League. Juliane Schenk (Germany), Tine Baun (Denmark), Mathias Boe and Carsten Mogensen (Denmark) and Sony Dwi Kuncoro are among those who have confirmed their availability, according to a press release from organisers Sporty Solutionz.
The USD 1 million Indian Badminton League (IBL) is scheduled to be held from June 24-July 11.
Apart from Baun, other high profile Europeans in the league will be No.11 Jan O Jorgensen and No.20 Marc Zwiebler. Sony Dwi Kuncoro, who will begin with a base price of USD 50,000 for the players auction, and compatriot world No 10 Simon Santoso will be the stars from Indonesia.
Olympics men’s doubles silver medalists Mathias Boe and Cartsen Mogensen from Denmark have also sent their confirmation. Among others, men’s world No. 8 Nguyen Tien Minh of Vietnam and two–time Olympic medallist Lee Yong Dae, have also confirmed their availability for the tournament.
Olympics men’s doubles silver medalists Mathias Boe and Cartsen Mogensen from Denmark have also sent their confirmation
The women’s circuit will witness top players such as German world No.4 Juliane Schenk and world No.9 Tai Tzu Ying of Chinese Taipei. Kuncoro was quoted as saying: “It is a great thing that the Badminton Association of India (BAI) has come up with a concept like this. It is a one of a kind initiative and will provide a rich learning experience for all the players. I feel it will bring fans closer to the sport,” said the Indonesian.
German star Schenk said in the statement that she was excited about playing the IBL and the league could be a turning point for the sport. “I’m looking forward to playing the IBL. It will be exciting and interesting for sure,” said Schenk, who clinched the women’s singles bronze in the 2011 World Championship.
BAI president Dr Akhilesh Das Gupta feels the presence of world-class players will make the league more competitive and interesting. “When you are organizing a league like this, it needs to be ensured that top players are part of it. Now we can assure the fans a world-class league,” said Das Gupta.
“We are thrilled to welcome some of the biggest names in badminton. The IBL will witness practically all the top-50 players in the world and we will be announcing more names soon,” said Ashish Chadha, CEO, Sporty Solutionz.
