After having seen cricketers being sold at auctions and shunning national colours for the Indian Premier league, the Indian Badminton league is all set to wow the spectators across the country. Foray Sport tells you how the six teams match up
MUMBAI MASTERS
STRENGTHS: World No. 1 lee Chong Wei of Malaysia gives the Mumnai brigade a clear advantage over the others. With All England winner Tine Baun and world No. 11 Marc Zweibler in the list this side is surely a big contender.
WEAKNESSES: There is hardly a strong woman singles player. Apart from Baun, who has struggled with injuries, no one looks good enough to fight. Doubles players are all Indians and would be tested against top pairs of other teams.
Players
1 lee Chong Wei (MS)
2 Marc Zweibler (MS)
3 Tine Baun (WS)
4 Pranav Jerry Chopra (MD)
5 Manu Attri (MD)
6 Siki Reddy
7 PC Thulasi
8 Vladimir Ivanov
9 Rasika Raje
10 Sumeet Reddy
HYDERABADHOTSHOTS
STRENGTHS: What else can you say about a team that is being spearheaded by none other than Saina Nehwal. They also roped in former Olympic champion Taufik Hidayat and have a good mixed doubles pairing in Pradnya Gadre and Tarun Kona, besides World No. 17 men’s doubles pair of V Shem Goh and Khim Wah lim that will allow them to try out various combinations.
WEAKNESSES: The two men’s singles matches could turn out to be a tricky affair as Taufik has retired from the game and has lost to Indian players recently. The other two singles player Ajay Jayaram and S. Tanongsak are also not very consistent.
Players
1 Saina Nehwal (WS)
2 Taufik Hidayat (MS)
3 Ajay Jayaram (MS)
4 V Shem Goh
5 Tarun Kona (MD)
6 Pradenya Gadre
7 Khim Wah lim
8 Tanongsak
9 Kanthi Visalakshi P
10 Shubhankar Dey
BANGA BEATS
STRENGTHS: The Bangalore has done well by buying top singles players. India’s very own Parupalli Kashyap (world No. 13) would be a fvourite with the crowd and Hu Yun (world No. 6) and Tai Tzu Ying (world No. 8) are enough to challenge for the title.
WEAKNESSES: They might have been smart in getting Danish Carsten Mogensen, world No. 3 in men’s doubles, but with his partner Mathias Boe going unsold, Carsten would play with India’s Akshay Dewalkar. Aparna Balan will also play with a new partner.
Players
1 P Kashyap (MS)
2 Hu Yun (MS)
3 Tai Tzu Ying (MS)
4 Carolina Marin (WS)
5 Carston Margensen (MD)
6 Akshay Dewalkar(MD)
7 Aparna Balan
8 Aditya Prakash
9 Arvind Bhat
10 J Meghana
lUCKNOWWARRIORS
STRENGTHS: Youth was the mantra for this side. With promising PV Sindhu, RMV Guru Sai Dutt and K Srikanth, who won the Thailand Grand Prix Gold this year, the side would be quite a fighting unit. Thailand’s Sapsiree Taerattanachai is good in singles (world No 14) and doubles.
WEAKNESSES: Men’s doubles could be a problem area. They have got world No. 14 Markis Kido of Indonesia but he will have to combine with a new partner.
Players
1 PV Sindhu (WS)
2 Weng Fei Chong (MS)
3 Guru Sai Dutt (MS)
4 K Srikanth (MS)
5 Sapsiree (WS)
6 Ruthvika Shivani (WS)
7 Marcis Kido
8 Maneepong Jongjit
9 K Maneesha
10 Nanda Gopal (MS)
DElHISMASHERS
STRENGTH: They have invested on the doubles with the best doubles combination in the league — Boon Hoeng Tan and Kien Keat Koo, the world No. 2 Malaysian pair. Jwala Gutta and V Diju do not play mixed doubles together anymore but their results in the past are more than enough.
WEAKNESS: Singles could be a grey area with inexperienced Arundhati Panthawane and Nichaon Jindapon in the ranks.
Players
1 Jwala Gutta (WD)
2 Wong Wing Ki (MS)
3 H.S. Prannoy (MS)
4 Sai Praneeth (MS)
5 Arundhati Panthawane (WS)
6 Boon Hoeng tan (MD)
7 Kien Keat Koo (MD)
8 V. Diju (MD)
9 Nichaon Jindapon
10 Prajakta Sawant
PUNE PISTONS
STRENGTHS: A balanced team with world No. 4 Juliane Schenk was the prized catch in women’s singles. In men’s singles, they have world No. 7 Tien Minh Nyugen. Can forge a good mixed doubles combination in Ashwini Ponnappa and Danish world No. 4 Joachiam Fischer Nielsen.
WEAKNESSES: The second men’s singles will have to be played by Saurabh Verma or Anup Sridhar, who is past his prime.
Players
1 Ashwini Ponappa(WD)
2 Nyugen tien Minh (MS)
3 Saurabh Verma (MS)
4 Anup Sridhar (MS)
5 Juliane Schenk (WS)
6 Joachiam Fischer Nielsen
7 Sanave Thomas
8 Arun Vishnu
9 Wee Kiong Tan
10 Rupesh Kumar