MUMBAI: Bengaluru Jawans etched their names in history by defeating Pune United 3-1 to claim the championship title of the first-ever World Pickleball League (WPL), India’s pioneering franchise-based pickleball tournament.
Held in south Mumbai’s Cricket Club of India, it is India's inaugural franchise-based pickleball competition, co-founded by Arjuna Awardee and former Indian tennis player Gaurav Natekar, along with former India No. 1 Arati Ponnappa Natekar.
It featured six teams: Mumbai Pickle Power, Pune United, Bengaluru Jawans, Chennai Super Champs, Hyderabad Hustlers, and Dilli Dilwale. Each team consisted of eight players, including five or six international players and one or two Indian players. The WPL also included top juniors selected by the federation to provide them with exposure to high-level competition. The league offered a prize pool of $250,000 (approximately Rs 2.1 crore), with awards distributed to the winner and runner-up teams.
It was streamed live on FanCode and telecast live on the Sony Sports network.
The tournament commenced with Mumbai Pickle Power facing Pune United, followed by Bengaluru Jawans clashing with Chennai Super Champs. Each team competed in five group-stage matches, with the top four advancing to the semi-finals. In total, spectators enjoyed 90 matches over the ten-day event.
The intense final saw Jack Foster deliver a commanding 26-8 victory in the men’s singles, setting the stage for Bengaluru’s success. Trang Hyunh-McClain and Alejandra Borobia followed with a 13-9 win in the women’s doubles. Pune United responded with William Sobek and Vanshik Kapadia securing a 15-6 men’s doubles victory, but Katerina Stewart’s decisive 21-9 triumph over Brooke Revuelta in the women’s singles sealed Bengaluru's championship.
Stewart, named Player of the League, said, “I’m incredibly grateful and overjoyed—it's still sinking in! These ten days of pickleball in India have been extraordinary. Winning with my team made it even more special. At 5-5 today, I had a bit of panic but reminded myself to stay calm and focus, and it paid off.”
