In a clear indication that she is the country’s leading women’s shuttler, P.V. Sindhu went to Chennai Smashers for Rs 39 lakh in the Premier Badminton League auctions which happened in the city this week. The Rio Olympic silver medallist went for nearly Rs 6 lakh more than her illustrious compatriot Saina Nehwal.
But what surprised most pundits and the lovers of the game was the fact that Olympic champion Carolina Marin went for an unprecedented Rs 61.5 lakh—making her the costliest buy in PBL. Hyderabad Hunters was the team who purchased the Spaniard.
From the Indian point of view, one would have expected that Sindhu would have fetched more than Rs 39 lakh. Also the most surprising fact was that the Olympic silver medallist went much below her compatriot Olympic quarter finalist Kidambi Srikanth (Rs 51 lakh). But then these auctions, like the ones in other sports, defy logic.
When asked as to how Sindhu didn’t fetch the expected price, a source in a team franchise said Sindhu’s name happened to come in the latter part of the draw for the 15 Icon players. “By that time, most of the franchises had already spent most of their money on buying the key players. Also I think the Chennai franchise acted smartly—they were content to play the waiting game and didn’t bid for anyone until Sindhu’s name came out. That’s why she (Sindhu) didn’t go for a big price,” said the source. Interestingly, Sindhu was unfazed by the “low” price she fetched during the auctions. “I am looking forward to the competition and also to the match against Carolina. Its going to be a good encounter between us this time,” she said.
In Saina’s case it was clearly her poor form and injury which resulted in her going for a mere Rs 33 lakh. Interestingly, she was also retained by her franchise Awadh Warriors. Ace doubles specialist Jwala Gutta (Rs 10 lakh) and Ashwani Ponappa (Rs 15 lakh) respectively. When asked for the comparative low price of both Jwala and Ashwani, a source said the duo’s poor showing and falling world ranking was the main reason. “Both are not performing their best right now and this I feel is the main reason why they have gone for such a low price,” said the source.
Moving away from the Indians, Denmark’s world no. 6 Jan O. Jorgensen became the third highest player when Delhi Acers bought him for Rs 59 lakh. The second highest bid went for South Korean woman shuttler Sung Ji Hyun, with Mumbai Rockets paying Rs 60 lakh for her. Denmark’s Viktor Axelsen too got a price of Rs 39 lakh landing up with Bengaluru Blasters, as did Wan Ho Son who was clinched by Delhi.
A dampner for these championships came when none of the top three of men’s singles Chinese duo of Chen Long and Lin Dan and Malaysian superstar Lee Chong Wei preferred to stay away from this blue riband event.
The Chennai franchise bought Tommy Sugiarto of Indonesia for Rs 26 lakh while South Korean Son Wan Ho (Rs 39 Lakh) and V. Shem Goh of Malaysia (Rs 33 lakh) went to Delhi and Lucknow respectively. Another South Korean, Yoo Yeon Seong, went to Bengaluru for Rs 39 lakh. As many as 154 players went under the hammer, including 16 Olympic medallists. Fifty of them were acquired by the six teams in the fray, shelling out Rs 1.93 crore each.
PBL’s chief advisor Pullela Gopichand said that this edition of the league will be “exciting” with the kind of players its has attracted. “The sport has generated a lot of interest in the country, more so after the Rio Olympics. So, in terms of the viewership, it is the best time for this league,” Gopichand, who is also the national head coach, said.