Dubai: Dubai will see another addition to it’s burgeoning sporting calendar with the launch of the Dubai Badminton League (DBL) from April 2.
Organised in coordination with the Dubai Sports Council (DSC), the DBL will see all the top badminton players from the UAE converge on a common platform over five days of unabated action.
As per the format laid down by Tino Thomas, the brainchild behind the DBL, all of the eight participating teams will consist of eleven members each, including a captain and a lady vice-captain. The captains and vice-captains were identified based on their performances for the past two seasons.
The eight teams will carry the names of as many prominent landmarks in Dubai such as Burj Khalifa, Burj Al Arab, Palm Jumeirah, World Trade Centre (WTC), Miracle Garden, Dubai Creek, Madinat Jumeirah and Dubai Fountains.
Besides the captain and vice-captain, each team will consist of junior players in the under-12, under-15 and under-18 categories, along with one each in the over-35 [Masters] and over-45 [Veterans] sections and another three men and one woman taking the total to eleven members.
Each team will have a basic sponsorship of Dh5,000, of which Dh2,000 will go to the captain and a further Dh500 for the vice-captain. Of the remaining amount, Dh1,000 will go towards purchase of team jerseys and the remaining Dh1,500 for organizational expenses.
“The entire idea for the DBL came to me sometime last year and I slowly started identifying people who could be captains of the teams. Slowly I started putting down the rules and assimilating key points that would be needed to drive such an ambitious project,” Thomas told Gulf News.
The eight teams will be divided into two pools of four each. The round-robin matches will be held on April 2 to 4 with the best two from each pool advancing to the semi-finals scheduled for April 9.
“We are doing this for the love of badminton. We have so many tournaments happening all over the UAE like the UAE Open Badminton Tournament at the India Club, the Fujairah Open and the Indian Association UAE Open in Ras Al Khaimah. While these competitions are good for our sport, we do not find a suitable platform for a true gathering of the entire family,” he added.
The playing format is such that everyone from the squad will get a chance to be involved. Each encounter between two teams will consist of seven ties, including two men’s doubles, one men’s singles, a mixed doubles, a under-15 and under-18 doubles, a masters and veterans doubles and a under-12 player joining a woman in the doubles.
“The rules are such that everyone has to perform. The rules are unique and we want to see all eleven players contribute to the success of the team,” noted Biju Kassim, who handles the marketing and commercial aspects of the league.
The organisers have been working on a stiff budget all along, setting aside a mandatory amount of Dh175,000 for expenses for the first edition of this competition. The top four teams stand to win cash prizes with the champion team getting Dh25,000 and the runners-up walking away with Dh15,000 and Dh5,000 for the third-placed team.
