GPBL postponement: Are players wrong in looking to earn some quick money?

PTI, Aug 27, 2023, 8:16 PM IST

Representative image (source: Pexels)

While the country is rejoicing HS Prannoy’s World Championships bronze medal in Copenhagen, back home more than 60 shuttlers have been deprived of an opportunity to show their skills and earn some much-needed money following the indefinite postponement of the Grand Prix Badminton League (GPBL).

The two-week league, with as many as 15 international players, was scheduled to get underway on Sunday. But it was deferred indefinitely after several players pulled out of the event after the Badminton Association of India (BAI) did not give necessary permission to run the league.

With the Premier Badminton League (PBL) — the flagship event of BAI — not happening since the COVID-19 pandemic, the GPBL was seen as a good opportunity by the second or third-string domestic players to earn a decent amount to fuel their dreams.

”Seriously, I don’t know why BAI is being so anti sport and restricting the spread of the game,” a senior player said on condition of anonymity.

”It is very difficult for young aspirants to keep their dreams alive. The top players are being funded by BAI and that’s great but what about the rest.

”There are a lot of All India ranking tournaments now. But the winner gets a meagre sum after taxes. While the entry fee is Rs 2000, runner-up in doubles is getting Rs 9000 and winner is getting Rs 15000 while the singles winner is probably getting Rs 35000.

”So, even if they win all the tournaments, they will get Rs 2 lakh. Where is the prize money? A player has to spend for accommodation, tickets, physios, good diet etc while going for the tournaments. Unfortunately, badminton has become a sport where parents and players are just losing money,” the player said.

Picture this: A singles player has to shell out a minimum of Rs 15 to 20 lakh to play 10 to 15 BWF tournaments in a year, while a two-week stint at the GPBL would have given someone like Mithun Manjunath Rs 14.5 lakh.

Even if a player wants to play only in Asia, he/she will need a minimum of Rs 60,000 to Rs 80,000 to go for one event. But someone like former world No. 11 Sameer Verma, who has been struggling due to injuries, the GPBL would have given him Rs 8.5 lakh.

A top tenner, B Sai Praneeth, who had won the 2019 World Championships bronze, is currently struggling with form and has slipped to 68th spot. A stint in the GPBL could have added Rs 10 lakh to his account.

These are just a handful of examples as there are many players such as Raghu Mariswamy, Shikha Gautam, Tanya Hemanth and Purva Barve, who could have tarvelled to a few more tournaments with the money that the franchises had paid them.

Overall, the GPBL could have made the players richer by Rs 2 to Rs 15 lakh.

”Look at football, how players make millions from leagues. Cricket has the IPL, which is helping hundreds of people. The Ranji players are paid well, there are many domestic tournaments but in badminton even a world championship medal is no guarantee of a good future,” an Indian men’s singles player said.

”These people are international medallists and Olympians and just because they don’t have financial backing, they have to go back to regular jobs.”

Things are no brighter at the international stage and many players have played in the PBL. This time 15 international players had signed up for the GPBL but now they are a disappointed bunch.

”There is disappointment for sure,” said Belgium’s Julien Carraggi, who had played the Syed Modi International in Lucknow last year.

”We travelled all the way for this league but now I have to go back. I have never played a league yet in my career. So, I was hoping for some good experience,” added the world No. 55, who was bought for Rs 8 lakh by Kerala Tuskers.

The GPBL was a state league in the inaugural edition but this year it decided to have players and teams from other states and make it a national league.