Tennis legend Vijay Amritraj and Owner Gurpreet Singh Kiki
unveils team logo and vision for the future of the team
NewZNew (Chandigarh) : The tennis fever is soon to hit India with the Champions Tennis League (CTL) and the Union Territory of Chandigarh will play its part in taking the game to the masses through their very own Punjab Marshalls. The logo of the team and future plans were unveiled by team owner Gurpreet Singh along with the legendary Vijay Amritraj, who is also the Chairman and MD of Second Serve Pvt Ltd, the brain behind the league.
Punjab Marshalls would be the second franchise owned team from the city after Kings XI Punjab in the Indian Premier League, and epitomises the character of the people of the city who believe that no challenge is too big to overcome. The team’s tag line ‘Hai Dum’ only looks to reinforce the message that the four-member team has been picked with an eye on creating a team that reflects the strength, skills and achievements of each player.
Punjab Marshalls boast of India’s No. 1 singles player Somdev Devvarman along with the tournament’s highest ranked men’s player David Ferrer of Spain, former great Greg Rusedski and the up and coming Garbine Muguruza in their ranks for the inaugural edition of the tournament, which will be played from November 17-26 across India. The Marshalls will launch their campaign against Delhi on November 17.
The six teams have been divided into two groups, with each team in the group playing each other on home and away basis within their group. Punjab Marshalls will host their home matches on November 20 and 21 at the Chandigarh Lawn Tennis Association Stadium. Mumbai is the third team in the group.
The teams which wins the highest number of games in each group during the group stage will face off in the finals scheduled for the 26th of November in New Delhi. Speaking about the team and the reasons behind investing in the league, Gurpreet Singh Kiki said, “My wife and I have always been passionate sports fans and wanted to do something for the development of sport in the region and India as a whole. The CTL provides a fantastic opportunity to contribute to the sport as well as a fantastic way of getting way into a sport that we like and hence it was a win-win situation for us,” said the 49 year-old, whose astute business mind has seen him build a successful company in Gurang Estates Pvt Ltd. with business interest spread across India.
Kiki, as Gurpreet is popularly known, was looking for a squad that is full of world class athletes and who embody the spirit and passion of Punjab and is thrilled to have Somdev, David, Garbine and Greg as a part of the Punjab Marshalls team in the launch edition of the Champions Tennis League. “We went to the draft with a certain plan and I am happy that we got the players we were looking for. We have a very strong team and I am confident that we can bring the crown to Punjab,” he added.
Vijay Amritraj, while speaking at the launch of the Punjab Marshalls, praised the efforts and vision of Punjab team and termed them as a strong competitor in the League. “The league will have some of the world’s best tennis stars in action. Tennis fans and in Chandigarh would get to watch them play and I am sure many more youngstars will be inspired to take up the sport by just watching them in action,” he added.
