Ahmedabad, May 21 (IANS) The Indian Pickleball Association (IPA) will conduct trials for the Indian Sub-Junior and Junior teams for the upcoming Pickleball World Cup from June 12 to 14.

The three-day trials in Ahmedabad will determine the junior squad for the third edition of the Pickleball World Cup, sanctioned by the Global Pickleball Federation, which will be held in Vietnam from August 30 to September 9.

Over 100 players from across the country, including Delhi, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Assam, Rajasthan, Odisha, Haryana, and Gujarat, are competing for a chance to represent India in the U14 and U18 categories at the World Cup. The selection committee for the trials include Aalap Sharma, Dhiren Patel, Mohit Kumar, Atul Edward and IPA CEO, Aditya Khanna.

“The Junior squad for the Indian Pickleball contingent is extremely vital as it determines the players that will represent India on the global stage for many years to come. These are the players who will potentially one day compete at the major global events once pickleball officially enters those events as well. The World Cup is the perfect starting point for the young talent across India to showcase their skills or compete alongside the best junior talent in the world,” Suryaveer Singh Bhullar, President, Indian Pickleball Association, said in a statement.

Notable names that will be part of the trials include Arjun Singh, who recently won 3 medals at the US Open in both singles and doubles. Naomi Amalsadiwala, one of India’s rising stars in the open category as well; Panth Thakkar, who won bronze at the US Open in the doubles category, Purvansh Patel, Anoushka Chabbria, Veer Shah & Dev Shah are amongst other names will be competing for the spot in the Indian team.

--IANS

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