The Indian Pickleball Association (IPA) declared on Friday that it had secured official recognition from the Union Sports Ministry, barely five months after it was registered as a “national” body.
The decision to grant recognition to IPA was taken on April 25, making it eligible for financial grants and autonomy to regulate, promote and develop the sport nationally, PTI reports.
“The IPA has been recognised by the ministry after a representation by the body a few days ago,” a sports ministry official told the newswire.
“This recognition is a historic milestone — but more importantly, it is a mandate to act,” IPA president Suryaveer Singh Bhullar stated.
Predictably, the much older All India Pickleball Association (AIPA), which has been in existence since 2008, has raised objections to the developments and is threatening legal action to protect its “usurped status”.
The AIPA issued a statement questioning the ministry’s move, asserting its status as the “pioneering body responsible for introducing and nurturing pickleball in India since 2007–08”.
“This decision is not only disheartening but raises serious concerns regarding transparency and fairness in sports governance. In the interest of fair play and sportsmanship, we urge the ministry to reconsider its decision and uphold the values of clean sports,” AIPA president Arvind Prabhoo stated.
The AIPA cited a clause in the 2011 National Sports Code which mandates that for a body to be considered a National Sports Federation, it should have “actively existed for more than three years on the date of application for recognition.”
The AIPA statement alleged that the ministry’s move appears to have been influenced by “undue lobbying and misleading representations made by the newly formed entity”.
“The AIPA gave a representation to the Sports Ministry on October 18 last year. But the ministry has decided to grant recognition to a four-month old company that has no organisational set-up, no district level presence like us,” AIPA treasurer Nikhil Mathare told PTI.
“Given the exemptions that have been made for AIPA, we are left with no choice but to take legal recourse. But we will have a conversation with the ministry before we proceed with it,” he added.
Delhi High Court directive against Sports Ministry’s recognition order
The Delhi High Court has directed the Sports Ministry to submit a detailed affidavit justifying its decision to grant recognition to IPA, following a legal challenge by AIPA.
Established in 2007, AIPA is the oldest and most widely represented governing body for pickleball in India, with active federations in 24 states. AIPA has played a pivotal role in the structured growth of the sport for nearly two decades and is also a founding member of both the International Pickleball Federation (IPF) and the Asian Pickleball Federation (APF), with official affiliations granted in 2015 and 2020, respectively, as per a press release from AIPA.
In its petition, AIPA contested the recognition granted by the Sports Ministry to IPA, citing violations of the National Sports Development Code of India.
Taking cognizance of the concerns raised, the Delhi High Court has asked ministry to provide reasoning and justification for granting any exemptions under the Sports Code, and has scheduled the matter for an interim relief hearing on May 19.
“AIPA has strongly pressed that the impugned recognition order is not sustainable and is arbitrary under the law,” said the association in its statement.
IPA was registered in November
IPA was registered in November last year as per the records of the Registrar of Companies, PTI reports.
Meanwhile, the IPA, citing the stamp of approval from the ministry, declared itself “as the sole apex body for the sport in India”.
The IPA further stated: “With systematic and painstaking groundwork laid by the members in IPA and a fast-growing community behind it, IPA is ready to drive the next chapter: building a nationwide ecosystem of access, excellence, and opportunity. This includes embedding pickleball in schools, communities, and elite training programs, and preparing Indian athletes for the global stage.”
Bhullar stated: “We are committed to building a world-class sporting structure for pickleball in India. The mission is clear: talent identification, equitable access, professional training, and global competitiveness – winning medals for India at the junior and pro categories at the world stage.” He further commented, “The current IPA team brings a wealth of experience — from organizing multiple state and national-level pickleball events to conducting coach certification programs and running junior development academies. Many of us have also represented India on the global stage — at the Olympics, Asian Games, and Commonwealth Games — as players, coaches, and administrators. This collective expertise is a tremendous asset for the growth of pickleball in India. As a team, we are committed to making pickleball one of the most popular sports in the country.”
Per an official release, a key priority for the IPA is youth player development, training and officiating, and professional pathways and events.
IPA Leadership
Bhullar – IPA president, national champion, and Asian gold medalist (50+)
Dhiren Patel – US Open gold medalist and national champion (35+) and India No. 1 (35+)
Vishnu Vardhan – Tennis Olympian and silver medalist in Asian Games
Lt. Col. Ranbir Chauhan – sports administrator – 25+ years of international and national exposure
Praveen Singh – tournament director of various international sporting events
Vivek Shokeen – former Davis Cupper India, active pickleball player and a coach
Amrita Mukherjee – Women’s national champion (Open)
Raima Sen – actor and pickleball advocate
International alignment
IPA is a member of the Global Pickleball Federation (GPF) and is actively aligned with its roadmap for Olympic inclusion. Supported by GPF, IPA is preparing Indian athletes for top-tier international competition.
It is worth noting that it is not just in India that there is an ongoing tussle over which body runs the sport. PTI reports that globally, there are three bodies that lay claim to being world governing bodies of the sport – the International Pickleball Federation (IPF), the World Pickleball Federation (WPF) and GPF. The IPF came into existence in 2010, followed by the WPF in 2018, while the GPF was founded in 2023 after the USA broke ranks with the IPF. The IPF and WPF have been working towards merger since last year and the AIPA is affiliated to the former.
For the record, IPA is aligned with the GPF, which is significant, seeing as pickleball has its origins in the USA. Further, GPF claims to have most number of international members at 52 right now.
