Premier Badminton League Season 5 auction: Full list of players bought by Bengaluru Raptors 

The jubilant team from Bengaluru, which, after many rechristenings had won their maiden Premier Badminton League title in 2018-19, is back in all its glory with a more fierce team to boast of. One of the main founders of the PBL, the Bengaluru squad has been in the headlines following their auction buys which features World No. 1 Taiwanese player, Tai Tzu Ying.

Ying, who has been the longest standing player at the World No. 1 position, is a key force in the world of badminton and has been the arch-nemesis of the likes of P V Sindhu and Saina Nehwal. In fact, Ying has often complimented Sindhu's power at smashes and considers her to be a difficult opponent. These two foes have not so surprisingly bagged the highest bids in Season 5 of the Premier Badminton League Auctions. Both players have been claimed for a whopping INR 77 lakhs. While the Bengaluru Raptors, eager to defend their title this year, has got Tai Tzu Ying on board, the Hyderabad Hunters,o n the other hand, are also armed with the reigning World Champion, P V Sindhu.

All seven teams- Awadhe Warriors, Bengaluru Raptors, Chennai Superstarz, Mumbai Rockets, North Eastern Warriors, Hyderabad Hunters, and Pune 7 Aces had the chance to retain their players from the previous edition. The team from Bengaluru decided to keep back B. Sai Praneeth, who recently became the first male shuttler since Prakash Padukone to clinch a bronze medal at the BWF World Championships. The Hyderabad-born player was retained by the team for a price of INR 32 lakhs.

B Sai Praneeth.

The other Indians in the squad include the 24-year-old Arun George who is a doubles specialist. Hailing from Kochi, George has been playing badminton from a very age and the Bengaluru Raptors could surely make use of his deft skills in some of the doubles matches. On the other hand, there is also the fresh recruit Ansal Yadav along with the incredibly young 17-year-old Medha Shashidharan, who have both been bagged by the Bengaluru Raptors for INR 1 lakh each. In fact, Arun George was also recruited into the team for INR 1 lakh.

Other than the supreme power of Tai Tzu Ying that is to head their team, there is also Frenchman Brice Leverdez to make things look sharp for the Bengaluru team. Leverdez, a former World No. 19 player, has often clashed with the Indian shuttlers and given them trouble on-court. The racket skills of the Frenchman are exceptional and the 33-year-old can still give a stiff competition to some of the best in the game. For Bengaluru, Leverdez will be a weapon in tight situations.

Brice Leverdez.

Featuring some Malaysian force there is Chan Peng Soon who specialises in mixed doubles matches. Ranked at World No. 5 currently by the BWF, the Bengaluru Raptors will depend heavily on Chan's experience on court to carry them through in the mixed doubles encounters. There is also the 24-year-old Chinese Tak Ching Chang who is mostly likely to pair up with Soon for the doubles encounters. Alternatively, Chang is a safe choice for the mixed doubles matches too. Giving the Chinese and the Malaysian support will be South Korea's Eom Hye Won who has been bagged by the Bengaluru Raptors for INR 25 lakhs. Meanwhile, Chang was bid for with INR 12 lakhs and Peng Soon was bought for INR 30 lakhs.

Replete with a fair share of experienced and new players, the team from Bangalore looks balanced and could be a threat to Mumbai or even Hyderabad and Chennai. Beginning from January 20 and concluding on February 9, the PBL 5 will pack in some great badminton action and Bengaluru will be a team to watch out for especially because of Tai Tzu Ying. It remains to be seen if they can defend their maiden title win this year with the biggest name in women's badminton leading them.

Here's the full Bengaluru Raptors squad:

1. Eom Hye Won (South Korea, Base Price: 25 L, Sold for: 25 L)
2. Tai Tzu Ying (Taiwan, Sold for: 77 L)
3. Brice Leverdez (France, Base Price: 15 L, Sold for: 21 L)
4. Tak Ching Chang (China, Base Price: 1 L, Sold for: 12 L)
5. Arun George (India, Base Price: 1 L, Sold for: 1 L)
6. Chan Peng Soon (Malaysia, Base Price: 18 L, Sold for: 30 L)
7. Ansal Yadav (India, Base Price: 1 L, Sold for: 1 L)
8. Medha Shashidharan (India, Base Price: 1 L, Sold for: 1 L)
9. B. Sai Praneeth (India, Sold for: 32 L, Retained player)