HYDERABAD: The Hyderabad Open 2025, the inaugural leg of the World Pickleball League (WPBL) On Tour, concluded in in Hyderabad over the weekend.
An initiative of WPBL, in association with franchise Hyderabad Superstars, the event marked a fitting start to the six-city tour, drawing over 250 players across three days, with a total prize pool of Rs 15 lakhs.
The Hyderabad Open showcased 60 competitive categories across age groups and levels – from U-18s to 50+ divisions – and featured DUPR-based draws to ensure fair play and thrilling contests. Star names from WPBL Season 1, including Hyderabad Superstars’ very own Kuldip Mahajan, headlined the professional categories.
Kuldip clinched the Pro Men’s Singles title, while Anuja Maheshwari (Pro Women’s Singles), Vanshik Kapadia (Pro Men’s Doubles and Mixed Doubles), and Vrushali Thakare (Pro Women’s and Mixed Doubles), Isha Lakhani (Pro Women’s Doubles) and Tejas Mahajan (Pro Men’s Doubles) also emerged champions, further adding to the spectacle.
Gaurav Natekar, founder & CEO, WPBL said: “After a handful of events already under our belt, we hosted our first flagship franchise tournament for the WPBL ‘On Tour’ in Hyderabad with our Hyderabad Superstars, our franchise partners for the city. As part of our commitment and vision designed to create real value for our franchises, partners, players and all our stakeholders, we will be having over 50 events under the WPBL ‘On Tour’ umbrella, culminating with season 2 in Mumbai. With Hyderabad behind us, our franchise tournament in New Delhi promises to be an even bigger showcase of what WPBL stands for.”
Rakul Preet Singh and Jackky Bhagnani, co-owners, Hyderabad Superstars, noted: “So happy to watch the entire pickleball community of Hyderabad showing up to the Hyderabad Open. This is the first step in the right direction to making sure that the next edition of the Hyderabad Open will see over 500 players. We are excited to now put our sights on the upcoming World Pickleball League Season 2 and hope to better our result from last year.”
Srinath Chitturi, co-owner, Hyderabad Superstars (KLO Sports), added, “Bringing pickleball to Hyderabad is the reason we started out with the World Pickleball League in the first place. We thank them for giving KLO Sports a chance to bring the Hyderabad Superstars alive. The support we got from the community in Hyderabad has been immense and the success of the Hyderabad Open is only testament to the commitment of the players and the pickleball community.”
Hyderabad Superstars were semi-finalists of Season 1 of WPBL. With the inaugural Hyderabad Open 2025, the franchise in conjunction with the League have laid the foundation for a year-round engagement with its fans and pickleball players in the city, in a first-of-its-kind initiative beyond the traditional tournament window.
With Hyderabad setting the tone, WPBL On Tour now heads north for the much-anticipated The Delhi Open, to be hosted in the national capital between 28th and 31st August 2025.
