Team lions wins1st runner-up & Team Rainbow Archers Finish 2nd runner-up
The KDD – Kuwait Badminton League 2016 February playoff was held was held on the 25th and 26th of February 2016. The Scorpions won the title without losing any ties on their way to the finals.
The opening ceremony was graced by Mr. Subramanian – VP Business integration KDD and he addressed the crowd and encouraged the players to maintain a healthy lifestyle which was in line with the vision of KDD.
KBL is the premier and only professional badminton league in Kuwait. Indian Badminton Association Kuwait (IBAK) in association with Kuwait Badminton federation (KBF) had conceived the idea of a league in 2015 and this is the 2nd consecutive year in which the league is held. Kuwait Danish Diary (KDD) remains the title sponsor of Kuwait Badminton League this year too.
KDD –Kuwait Badminton League 2016 will have 2 playoffs; February 2016, and September 2016. KBL 2016 has 6 teams owned by IBAK members and were sponsored by individuals/Corporates. 102 top players who practices across different clubs in Kuwait were auctioned into each teams in January 2016. The Auction was done by Engineer Suresh Elias at IBAK on 18th January
This year the league features 8 international players who added to the competitiveness of the league. KDD – KBL was a fantastic opportunity for players where senior/international players helped and played with junior players and experiences and expertise were shared across.
This year saw addition of two categories to the tie; under - 15 and Ladies doubles. Under 15 was a great addition which clearly helped boys and girls to practice and gain guidance from senior players. Ladies doubles was in tune with IBAK’s vision to provide a boost to women’s badminton in Kuwait.
The players who participated in this year’s edition represent a wide variety of nationalities and practice daily in various clubs across Kuwait. IBAK sincerely thanks all the clubs who supported in this great venture which is regarded as the top most rated badminton tournament in Kuwait
The preparation for the tournament started when IBAK opened its doors to all players for practice in the first week of February. The month saw intense training sessions by all the teams which resulted in the league being this competitive. All Owners and Captains were instrumental in making this a success.
KDD - KBL 2016 Teams –
1.ACME ACERS
2.TEAM LIONS
3.RAINBOW ARCHERS
4.THE SCORPIONS
5.THANJAI NINJAS
6.SHUTTLE DRAGONS
This year’s matches were played in league cum knockout basis; the league was played in full round robin format and four top teams based on league wins and points qualified for the knock out phase (Semifinals). The winner of semifinals clashed in the finals and losers went on to play the losers finals.
The Matches started at 9.30 pm on 25th February. The initial tie was between the following teams
Rainbow Archers was up against Team Lions, Thanjai Ninjas took on Shuttle Dragons and The Scorpions played with ACME Acers.
Corporate Sponsors of KBL and its teams
Kuwait Badminton League 2015 title sponsor – Kuwait Danish Diary (KDD) – In line with its vision of “Wholesome Goodness” KDD came forward to support KBL for the second consecutive year.
Apex was the court sponsor
Team Lions –McDonalds, GPES
Team Acers – ACME International
Team Scorpions – Al - Khadda International , Indomie, KDSC
Team Rainbow – Air Arabia – Air Arabia was the travel sponsor for KBL 2016 flying international players in and out of Kuwait.
FINAL RESULTS
The Scorpions emerged victorious with a clinical 4-3 win over Team Lions and Team rainbow Archers won the 2nd runner up title defeating ACME Acers 5-2
The Scorpions – Winner KDD – KBL 2016, February playoff
Owner – Rajesh Panicker & Amith Krishnan
Anto Santiko
Aneef K Latheef
Sarin Joseph
Jabbar Farooqi
Sreekumar Gopinathan Nair
Saju Thomas
Mohammad Elkhyat
Sajeeve Punnakkal
Choi Yougie
Manju Roney
Juvy Caina
Pradeepan PM
Sayooj Ajaykumar
Manas Manoj
Keegan Sanctis
Dinesh Nair – International Player
Vishnu Sreekumar – International Player
Team Lions – 1st Runner up KDD – KBL 2016 , February playoff
Owner – Syam SP , Bipin Madhavan, Sunny Mathew
Jerosh Koshy
Kishore Kumar
Bibin Mathew
Sanal Nambiar
Erwin Mercado
Emmanuel Elesis
Shahoor Ali
Nanang Reska
Syam SP
Alma Levy
Ainur Jubail
Suraj Arun Bapu
Adarsh Kamath
Iyan Sumarna
James Varghese – International Player
Team Rainbow Archers – 2nd Runner up KDD – KBL 2016 , February playoff
Owner – Asif
Faheem Contractor
Suresh Ramachandran
Yashin Bose
Anthony Glen Relova
Dadang Rudiyanto
Mohammad Nurrohim
Muradh Niyas
Gokul Natarajan
Joseph Tantiago
Joy Dela Cruz
Jeanette Tantiago
Dharshan Ramesh
Danush
Rohit Haridas – International Player
The trophy’s and Prize money for KDD – KBL off was awarded to winners.
The 2nd Runner up trophy and prize money was awarded by Mr Mohan Menon – Chief Referee KDD – KBL
The 1st Runner up trophy and prize money was awarded by Ahmed Darwesh, Country Manager - Indomie
The Winners trophy and prize money was awarded by Mr Allen Periera , Sales Manager – Air Arabia
Mementos were given to Umpires and Line Judges for their services rendered during the tournament by Mr Allen Periera – Sales Manager Air Arabia
KBL Committee:
Dr Manimara Chozhan – President
Mr. Sreekumar Gopinathan Nair – Vice president
Mr. Yashin Bose - C.O.O
Prasad Thandasserry – Director, Match Control
Chandrahas KT – Director Audit
Mohammad Sirajuddin – Director, Administration
Ramesh Chandra – Director Courts
Ramesh P – Director PR
Sreenivasa Sreedhara- Director, Umpiring