Indian Badminton League (IBL)

International stars make beeline for Indian Badminton League

PTI | Feb 18, 2013, 07.31 PM IST

NEW DELHI: Top badminton stars, including two-time All England champion Tine Baun of Denmark and world No. 4 Indonesian Sony Dwi Kuncoro will participate in the inaugural edition of the $1 million Indian Badminton League (IBL), scheduled to be held from June 24-July 11.

Sony Dwi Kuncoro, who will begin with a base price of $50,000 for the 'Players Auction', and compatriot world No. 10 Simon Santaso will be the stars from Indonesia, while Europe will be represented by continental champion Marc Zweibler of Germany and Danish world No. 11 Jan O Jorgensen.

Olympics men's doubles silver medalist and world No. 1 Mathias Boe and Cartsen Mogensen from Denmark have also sent their confirmation to go under the hammer.

Among others, men's world No. 8 Tien Minh Nguyen of Vietnam and the 2012 Olympics bronze medalist in doubles, Lee Yong Dae, have also confirmed their availability for the biggest prize money badminton tournament in the world.

-------------------------------------------------
Full article : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...ian-Badminton-League/articleshow/18559940.cms

 

[h=1]IPL-style badminton league starts in June[/h]
http://gulfnews.com/sport/other-sports/ipl-style-badminton-league-starts-in-june-1.1148273

Excerpts:

One of India’s top badminton players feels the game is all set to transform itself for the better, insisting the upcoming $1 million (Dh3.67 million) Indian Badminton League (IBL) will act as the catalyst in this regard.
Valiyaveetil Diju, who in partnership with Jwala Gutta is the reigning national mixed-doubles champion, is in Abu Dhabi to take part in the 36th ISC Open championship and said India has a bright future in the game.



“With Saina Nehwal already creating waves and a string of players battling for top positions, India is already a force to be reckoned with. This will only get better when the inaugural IBL gets going,” said the 32-year-old.



“The IBL has been a real positive for the badminton world. The IPL-style championship will see six to eight franchise-based teams who will buy international and Indian players through an auction and then field them in a home-and-away team competition,” Diju added.


The IBL is scheduled to be held from June 24-July 11.



“With most of the world’s top 50-ranked players and Indians in action, fans of the game will be in for a treat and youngsters can gain a lot of experience. Plus the money is good, both prize money as well as base prices for individual players,” he said.



Diju, who won the Commonwealth Games bronze medal with Gutta in 2006, will play in the men’s doubles and the mixed doubles at the ISC Open. The Indian ace, who played in an exhibition match in Dubai before coming here, admitted that despite the huge interest in the game in the UAE and the Gulf region, a lack of proper coaching is an issue.



“There is a huge following for the game and many parents do encourage their kids to play badminton. But many of the youngsters lack the basics and this is important. Even I started to improve tremendously once I started getting coaching from Indonesian coaches. Learning the correct technique is very important,” Diju said.



“Clubs, associations and schools should try and get the services of top coaches and this will help boost the game in a major way,” he said, adding that there were ample employment opportunities and rewards for becoming a professional player.



Admitting his liking for the doubles format only, Diju said, “Perhaps I became a doubles player as

I enjoyed more success in this category. I always play the aggressive and attacking role, while my partner plays the defensive role.”

Diju, whose wife is an Ayurvedic doctor, is here at the invitation of the India Social Centre and was welcome by ISC President Thomas John.

I wanted to post this article here as it speaks about IBL . I bet it that india won't be far away from the rest of the nations in this sports . And everybody will be going to witness it soon .

 

[h=1]‘Great Indian Badminton League’ set to take off

http://www.sportskeeda.com/2013/04/02/great-indian-badminton-league-set-to-take-off/?ref=related[/h]
EXCERPTS:

The league format in badminton has finally gained ground in India. Following the success of the state IPL-style leagues in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, and the announcement of the Indian Badminton League, a league for amateur players is set to begin on April 21.
Called ‘The Great Badminton Premier League’, the event is being organised by the team that initiated the successful ‘The Great Indian Squash League’ over the last year, and is targeted at competitors from schools, colleges, residential societies and corporate organisations.


Former national squash player and international referee Vikas Sharma, who was part of the team that organised the squash league, said the model would be replicated in badminton. “We ran the squash league successfully over 1-1/2 years,” he said. “It was one of the parents who suggested we start a badminton league as well. Badminton is the first sport for any player – several of our squash players played badminton first. We’ll have 16 teams, to be divided into two or four pools, and matches will be played in round-robin format. The league will run through the year.”

Each team will have two doubles, and although the league is expected to attract mainly amateurs, Sharma says professional players are welcome too. The squash league apparently has several national players taking part. All matches will take place at Siri Fort, the venue of the Commonwealth Games badminton tournament. “We want the league to take place through the year,” says Sharma. “In a tournament, the event is over within a week, but with a league, the engagement lasts longer.”


Sharma does not have big ambitions for the league yet, being content with engaging as many players as possible, but he doesn’t rule out a bigger, pan-India edition in future. “We have no ambitions… we’d like the corporates to come in and support the players,” he says. “But if something works out, why not? We have got enquiries from teams in Maharashtra, Bangalore, Chandigarh.”

The squash league has 24 teams divided in two divisions (first division and premier), and each edition of the league is held over four Sundays (called ‘Super Sundays’), all within six weeks.

The time between two editions is used to update the rankings. “It’s very intense and competitive,” says Sharma. “People initially don’t understand the concept of a round-robin, but once they play it, they understand its value. Every Sunday you get to play three matches… we’re using the same format in badminton too.”

 

[h=1]Indian Badminton League to be played between Aug 14-31[/h]

http://www.sportskeeda.com/2013/05/08/indian-badminton-league-aug-14-31/

EXCERPTS:

The much awaited lucrative Indian Badminton League (IBL), which offers a prize purse of $1 million, will be held across six major Indian cities Aug 14-31.
The finals will be held in Mumbai Aug 31 while Hyderabad and Bangalore will get to host the semi-finals.


New Delhi will host the grand opening ceremony of the IBL, featuring international and national star-cast, Aug 13, followed by the first round rubbers slated for Aug 14-15.


The six franchise-based city teams featuring in the first edition of the IBL are: Hyderabad HotShots (Hyderabad), Rajdhani Smashers (Delhi), Mumbai Masters (Mumbai), Karnataka Kings (Bangalore), Pune Vijetas (Pune) and Lucknow Warriors (Lucknow).


Badminton Association of India (BAI) president Akhilesh Das Gupta said Wednesday: “The preparations for the Indian Badminton League are in full swing. I’m confident the IBL Opening Ceremony will be a breathtaking extravaganza with the whole world watching it live.”

​

​

 

Looks like it's just after the World Championships, for which Lin Dan got a wild card. I doubt the participation of the big guns after a major tournament!!

WC - August 5-11
IBL - Aug 14-31

(Though the big guns can join after a week's rest, as it happens in IPL)

 

Vivaki Exchange bags media duties for Indian Badminton League

http://www.afaqs.com/media/story/37497_Vivaki-Exchange-bags-media-duties-for-Indian-Badminton-League


EXCERPTS:

The account size is pegged at Rs 25 crore.

Indian Badminton League (IBL) has awarded its media duties to VivaKi Exchange. The account size is pegged at Rs 25 crore. IBL is a joint venture between Badminton Association of India (BAI) and Sporty Solutionz, the commercial partners for the event, and is a property valued at one million USD.

IBL had earlier invited a multi agency pitch before awarding the mandate to VivaKi.


The media mandate includes television and print, and a special focus on digital. The pan India campaign on the digital platform will come out in two weeks, while the television campaign is expected to be launched in the next 45 days. The campaign will target youth in the SEC AB category.

[TABLE="class: tbclass_l"]
[TR]
[TD]

​

[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]

​

[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
Apart from the media campaigns, there will be concerts and felicitations involving celebrities in the states on the days of the tournament.


Mona Jain, CEO, VivaKi Exchange, says, "Of late, the sports category has seen a massive upward swing, largely due to a plethora of sports channels, coupled with Indian accolades internationally.

Badminton is undoubtedly the fastest growing sport in the world and enjoys a massive following in India
after Saina Nehwal's exploits in the 2012 London Olympics. I am sure IBL will be seen as a viable destination for large spending advertisers, who want to maximise their spends on media through sports this year."


Tarun Nigam, COO, VivaKi Partnerships Unit, says, "It will be a tough task as badminton is not a regular brand. We will have to change the psyche of the people and if soccer and Formula 1 leagues can do well in India, then badminton can definitely do well."


He adds that social media will play a key role as people want to talk about other sports on the medium, as they do for soccer and car racing.


The IPL-styled Indian Badminton League will be held during August 14-31 across six cities in the country. The final will be held in Mumbai on August 31.


The six franchise-based city teams featuring in the first edition of the IBL are Hyderabad Hotshots (Hyderabad), Rajdhani Smashers (Delhi), Mumbai Masters (Mumbai), Karnataka Kings (Bengaluru), Pune Vijetas (Pune) and Lucknow Warriors (Lucknow).


Top badminton icons such as Saina Nehwal, Jwala Gutta, Parupalli Kashyap, Ashwini Ponnappa and PV Sindhu have confirmed their participation in the league.


VivaKi is part of Publicis Groupe and was launched in India in 2008. With its around-the-world activities spanning more than 104 countries across five continents, the group employs about 44,000 professionals.

 

[h=1]IBL launches school badminton programme[/h]
http://www.sportskeeda.com/2013/05/31/ibl-launches-school-badminton-programme/

EXCERPTS:

The Indian Badminton League School Programme (IBLSP) today launched ‘Shuttle Express’, the biggest school championship to promote the sport across India. Under IBLSP, badminton icons like Olympic medallist Saina Nehwal, former all-England champion Pullela Gopichand, Jwala Gutta, Ashwini Ponnappa, Parupalli Kashyap and P.V. Sindhu will visit school campuses across India to promote badminton and encourage around five lakh students from more than 120 schools in six different cities.


The ‘Shuttle Express’ will offer Rs.10 lakh in prize money to the winners in both the boys and girls singles events. The events will be held in Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Lucknow and Pune.

The finalists will also be given an opportunity to train at the Pullela Gopichand Academy in Hyderabad.


The programme will be held in three phases to scout talent and will be an intra-school competition July 12-14 while the national finals will be conducted in Mumbai Aug 28-31.


Speaking about Shuttle Express, president of Badminton Association of India (BAI) Akhilesh Das Gupta said: “As a former player who benefited enormously from an active school environment for badminton, I am confident that Shuttle Express will provide a great platform and opportunity to thousands of badminton-loving children to fulfil their aspirations and motivate them to take the sport as a career.”


Shuttler Saina Nehwal said: “It is nice to see that badminton as a sport is being promoted among kids. Shuttle Express will not only generate huge interest amongst the young but also give them the opportunity to get their talent recognised.”

If the sport has become this much popular, i wanna give the credit to none other than SAINA NEHWAL.

 

[h=1]Sachin Tendulkar to own an Indian Badminton League (IBL) team?[/h]
http://www.dnaindia.com/sport/18504...ar-to-own-an-indian-badminton-league-ibl-team

EXCERPTS:

Officials tight-lipped but Sachin is believed to have bought Mumbai franchise in million-dollar badminton league.

Sachin Tendulkar

The deck is cleared for the million-dollar Indian Badminton League (IBL) with Hyderabad-based PVP group being named the first franchise in the six-team tournament that runs from August 14-31 across cities.

The names of the five other franchises are being kept under wraps for completion of paper work. According to highly-reliable sources, Sachin Tendulkar has come forward to promote the sport and own a team, which in all probability would be Mumbai Masters.

“I would say it is too early, and I would not like to take any names, but a prominent cricketer will be the owner of the Mumbai team,” said a source.

“We have finalised all the franchises and PVP group are our first,” said Ashish Chadha, CEO of Sporty Solutionz (the commercial partners for IBL), of the Hyderabad-based multi-business house that has interest in realty, media and entertainment.

The other franchise owners could be Dabur (Promoters) for Pune team and Sahara India for Lucknow, though no official confirmation has come from the organisers. It is also learnt that the Bangalore and Delhi franchises could be owned by corporates from the real estate business.

“PVP Group are the first, and the rest are finalised but for the paper work. We will come out with the names as and when the paper work is done with,”
Chadha added.

IBL, which will see some of the world’s leading shuttlers including the best from India, will be played in all the six cities, each hosting the others in a two-day leg. The top four franchises will clash in the semifinals. The winners will meet in the final on August 31 in Mumbai.

 

I think 3 groups have brought the Mumbai team and Sachin is one of the partners. If so, great for the game and it's publicity.

 

[h=1]Indian Badminton League: Chinese, Indonesian, Korean players to take part[/h]
http://sports.ndtv.com/othersports/...hinese-indonesian-korean-players-to-take-part

EXCERPTS:

Contrary to media reports, top badminton stars from leading Asian countries like Indonesia, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, China and Malaysia will be taking part in the Indian Badminton League (IBL).

Badminton Association of India (BAI) on Saturday said that IBL has already received confirmation from top shuttlers from Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia and China in addition to 12 other leading badminton nations across continents.

The player auction of the IPL will take place in New Delhi on July 19. The IBL Auction will feature almost all the world top-50 players in both men's and women's categories and the current pool of 150 players for the auction is likely to increase as the last date for entry is July 5.

"We would like to keep the facts straight. A lot of effort has gone in to build the IBL and we are confident of putting up a great show as promised. For the record, seven men players in the top-10 world ranking and six players in the women's top-10 rankings have confirmed with a total of 112 foreign players having signed up for IBL till now," said Ashish Chadha, CEO Sporty Solutionz, the 'Commercial Partner' to the IBL

World No.7 and the winner of the recent Singapore Open, Indonesian's Tommy Sugiarto leads the Indonesian parade, along with Sony Kuncoro and Lindaweni Fanetri, who are respectively the men's world No. 10 and women's world No.11. Hong Kong's Hu Hyun, the men's world No.6, Japan's Kenichi Tago, the men's world No.5 and women's world No.10 Minatsu Mitani, and South Korea's bronze medallist in the 2012 London Olympics, Lee Yong-Dae are the other top names who will figure in the bidding process.

As expected, men's world No.1 from Malaysia, 'Datuk' Lee Chong Wei is set to go under the hammer at the IBL Players Auction. The other top-10 men player who have confirmed are - world No.4 Boonsak Ponsana from Thailand and Vietnam's Tien Minh Nguyen.

The $1-million Indian Badminton League is set to launch on August 14, 2013, with some high-voltage action expected between Hyderabad Hotshots and Karnataka Kings. 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.

The top four franchisee in the League will clash in the semifinals and the winners will meet in the grand final August 31, which will be played out in Mumbai, for the richest prize money tournament in badminton till now.

 

[h=1]Badminton stars gear up for IBL by playing cricket[/h]
http://www.sportskeeda.com/2013/07/04/badminton-stars-gears-up-for-ibl-playing-cricket/

EXCERPTS:

“Is this what it takes to get your attention?” These were the words by Indian Badminton League (IBL) stars like Saina Nehwal and many others.


For a tournament copied from Indian Premier League (IPL), IBL seems to be trying its best to get attention, or at least that is what their promotional campaign suggests.


With the first edition of IBL just six weeks away, a lot of people have been trying to raise interest in the franchise-based competition consisting of six teams. The very first promotional event takes a dig at India’s most popular sport.


The idea was to be as sarcastic as possible. The shuttlers, wearing cricketing gear, played cricketing shots using badminton rackets and challenged the spectators, asking whether badminton needs to be played in cricket style to get noticed.

Saina Nehwal, in her all earnestness, appealed: “Is this what it takes to get your attention?”


On wearing pads and gloves, Saina said: “It was fun. I had never done anything like this before.”


“The shoot was fun. Hopefully, people will like what I did. This is an innovative concept. Cricket is obviously the most popular sport and Badminton is trying to become one of the big sports. This is a great way to promote the IBL,” she continued.

Jwala Gutta, the controversial shuttler, said: “This is a very fresh and innovative concept. I like the way they take a dig at cricket. It looks like the IBL will make an impact.”


Ashwini and Jwala made an entrance like a pair of openers in cricket.
They then punched gloves, wore their helmets and proceeded to hit the shuttlecock out of the court.

Gopi, meanwhile, used a cricket bat to hit shuttlecocks to the ‘slip cordon’ while Saina played a few strokes with her racquet.


If this is the benchmark for thinking behind the IBL, the inaugural edition of the tournament promises some fun times ahead.

 

[h=2]Rashid Sidek to coach Indian Badminton League's Delhi franchise[/h]
http://www.mid-day.com/news/2013/ju...h-indian-badminton-league-delhi-franchise.htm

It was also announced that former World No 1 and legendary Malaysian shuttler Rashid Sidek will coach the Delhi Smashers.

Rashid Sidek
Speaking on his appointment, 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 IBL.”

Sidek won the Thomas Cup, the 1996 Atlanta Olympics bronze and two Commonwealth Games gold medals during his career. After retiring, Sidek was instrumental in motivating and coaching the new generation of Malaysian players, including current World No 1 Lee Chong Wei.

 

wow, this league is a breakthrough for badminton, not just in India, but also in the world.
money prize is quite high....
thumbs up !!

 

This looks fantastic! Can't wait to see how it progresses!

 

Sania Mirza signed as brand ambassador of Delhi franchise in Indian Badminton League


Sania tried her hand at badminton on the sidelines of the function and played a short-duration friendly match with a local female player. Mirza said badminton holds a lot of promise in India with the likes of Saina Nehwal and Ashwini Ponappa performing well at the international level.


http://sports.ndtv.com/othersports/...of-delhi-franchise-in-indian-badminton-league

EXCERPTS:




Business conglomerate Krrish Group on Friday named Indian tennis star Sania Mirza as the brand ambassador of its Delhi franchise in the upcoming Indian Badminton League (IBL).

Krrish Group, which deals in distillery, breweries, construction and real estate, will make its debut in sports arena with the IBL and has named its franchise "Delhi Smashers".

"It's an amazing concept and I wish the Delhi franchise all luck in the IBL. I hope to attend a few games and try to find some time from my busy schedule. It's great to be announced the brand ambassador of the franchise," Mirza told reporters here.

"Badminton is different to my racquet sport. I haven't played badminton for a long...may be after 20 years I think. The whole concept is amazing. With the IPL doing so well and with the tennis, we are also starting ITPL which Mahesh (Bhupathi) is doing. Right now, badminton does have a certain star power and I think there's no reason for it not to work," she added.

Sania tried her hand at badminton on the sidelines of the function and played a short-duration friendly match with a local female player.

Mirza said badminton holds a lot of promise in India with the likes of Saina Nehwal and Ashwini Ponnappa performing well at the international level.

"I would like to say I am honoured to play for India for so long. Shuttlers like Saina, Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa are playing so well for India which augurs well for the sport. It's great for badminton and it's great for sportswomen in the country," she said.

Asked whether youngsters need to look beyond cricket in India, Sania replied,"I have been asked this question for over the last 20 years!"

"I have never competed with cricket and that's never our goal really. Our goal is to try and do well in the sport that we have chosen, that's what we are trying to do."

"I am here today as a sportsperson, not badminton not my sport, its a sport which needs a lot of attention, encouragement and a lot of push to become a very big sport in the country. With people like Saina Nehwal, we are able to set the standards high in badminton. We can say that we are world beaters in badminton," she added.

The Gurgaon-based business group has appointed former World No 1 Rashid Sidek as the chief coach of the side. The Malaysian had won the Thomas Cup and an Olympic bronze medal. The USD one-million IBL is set to launch on August 14, 2013, with a clash between Hyderabad Hotshots and 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.

The top four franchises in the League will clash in the semifinals and the winners will meet in the grand finale on August 31, which will be played in Mumbai.

 

This is impressive stuff, really helping to make badminton a professional sport. Surely this will do a lot for the development and incentive for future Indian players and all at the cost of.... oh wait everybody involved should make money eventually, brilliant!

What date do the players get auctioned? Read it somewhere forgot now cant find