New Delhi: Red Bull Shuttle Up — India’s first exclusive women’s doubles tournament — has returned for its second edition. The qualifiers for the tournament will be held across five cities, Delhi, Hyderabad, Guwahati, Chandigarh and Bengaluru from October 19 to November 16. Open exclusively for women above the age of 16, all matches are played on a knock out basis where all pairs play the best of three set with 11 points (rally points) instead of the traditional 21 points a set.
Each pair, with prior notification to the referee, can call for a super point once in a set. By calling for a super point, the pair will get two points if they win that particular point. There will be no deduction of points if the pair loses that point. Players must be prepared to play five/six matches in a day during the event. The winning pair of each qualifier will qualify for the national finals on December 8 in Hyderabad.
The national finals winners will get a chance to play against Ashwini Ponnappa and a partner of her choosing.
“It has been my ambition to promote badminton as a sport in India, especially for women. It’s great to be associated with brands like Red Bull that create such platforms and give wings to the aspiring talents,” said Ponnappa.
“It’s been a great journey with Red Bull Shuttle Up and I only see it growing in the years to come. I would like to wish luck to all the participants,” she added.
The first edition of the tournament was an overwhelming success as India’s U19 ranked number 1 women’s doubles pair Ritika Thaker and Simran Singhi from Mumbai claimed the championship title after a charged 11-1; 11-6 final match win over their opponents Daman Rajkumar and Muskan Taya from Delhi. IANS