Mumbai Smashers snap world no. 3 Quang Duong for upcoming Indian Pickleball League

Mumbai, Nov 22 (PTI) World No. 3 Quang Duong of Vietnam and USA's Megan Fudge were the most sought after male and female foreign players and were snapped up by Mumbai Smashers and Hyderabad Royals respectively in the Players' Draft for the inaugural Indian Pickleball League, here on Saturday.

Lucknow Leopards, meanwhile, went for top India male superstar Aditya Ruhela.

The inaugural Indian Pickleball League, launched by The Times Group and recognised by the Indian Pickleball Association under the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, will be played from December 1 to 7 at the KD Jadhav Indoor Hall in New Delhi.

The six teams competing in the inaugural edition are Mumbai Smashers, Hyderabad Royals, Chennai Super Warriors, Capital Warriors Gurgaon, Bengaluru Blasters and Lucknow Leopards.

The Players' Draft saw top players being picked by the six teams in three competitive groups: the Super Stars Pro International pool, the Super Stars Pro Indian pool, and the Rising Stars category, which features more than 20 of the nation's most promising young talents.

Vineet Jain, Managing Director, The Times Group, wished all teams the very best, saying, "Today's Draft is a very special moment for the Indian Pickleball League. I am really excited how each one of you are going to shape the league going forward.

"Pickleball is the fastest growing sport in the world as well as in India. And with your passion and dedication, I am sure we will make Pickleball the biggest sport after cricket." At the Players' Draft, Mumbai Smashers, backed by Nazara Technologies, were quick to acquire USA-based Duong as their first pick while Lucknow opted for Ruhela.

Bengaluru Blasters opted for Phuc Huynh of Vietnam as their top pick, Chennai Super warriors went with Netherlands' female star player Roos Van Reek while Hyderabad Royals put their faith in Megan Fudge, who plays and trains in USA and UK.

The Teams: Mumbai Smashers: Quang Duong (Superstar Male International), Allison Harris (Superstar Female International), Anmol Ramchandani (Superstar Male Indian), Pearl Amalsadiwala (Superstar Female Indian), Rishi Reddy (Rising Star Male), Sindoor Mittal (Rising Star Female).

Lucknow Leopards: Aditya Ruhela (Superstar Male Indian), Ronav Motwani (Rising Star Male), Ryler DeHeart (Superstar Male International), Shelby Bates (Superstar Female International), Mihika Yadav (Superstar Female Indian), Naomi Amalsadiwala (Rising Star Female).

Hyderabad Royals: Ben Newell (Superstar Male International), Megan Fudge (Superstar Female International), Divyanshu Kataria (Superstar Male Indian), Snehal Patil (Superstar Female Indian), Tejas Gulati (Rising Star Male), Shreya Chakraborty (Rising Star Female).

Chennai Super Warriors: Mitchell Hargreaves (Superstar Male International), Roos Van Reek (Superstar Female International), Harsh Mehta (Superstar Male Indian), Aaliya Ebrahim (Superstar Female Indian), Aman Patel (Rising Star Male), Priyanka Mehta (Rising Star Female).

Capital Warriors Gurgaon: Jack Munro (Superstar Male International), Emilia Schmidt (Superstar Female International), Stavya Bhasin (Superstar Male Indian), Naimi Mehta (Superstar Female Indian), Arik Badami (Rising Star Male), Danielle Jones (Rising Star Female).

Bengaluru Blasters: Phuc Huynh (Superstar Male International), Pei Chuan Kao (Superstar Female International), Arjun Singh (Superstar Male Indian), Rakshikha Ravi (Superstar Female Indian), Aditya Singh (Rising Star Male), Shraddha Damani (Rising Star Female). PTI PDS SSC SSC