Leander Paes, co-owner of Mumbai Leon Army, along with coach Sukhwant Basra, backed youngsters Nikki Poonacha and Aryan Goveas and picked the two National finalists at a price of ₹2.25 and 1.25 lakh at the second Tennis Premier League (TPL) auction held at Meluha The Fern, Powai.
Nikki had downed Aryan in the summit clash in New Delhi last week.
There was a tough battle for leading Indian men’s players before Saketh Myneni (Delhi Binny’s Brigade), Somdev Devvarman (Gujarat Panthers), Vishnu Vardhan (Bengaluru Hawks), Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan (Punjab Bulls) and Purav Raja (Pune Warriors) all fetched an identical price of ₹2.25 lakh.
Ankita Raina (Binny’s Brigade), Y. Pranjala (Bulls), Mahak Jain (Panthers) and Rutuja Bhosale (Warriors) went for ₹1.5 lakh each.
There was an encouraging response for the girls’ under-18 and boys’ under-14 categories too. The eight teams (eight players each) will vie for honours from December 12 to 15.
Kunal Thakkur, league co-founder, said: “I am very happy that our top Indian players got the maximum bid. I am sure with the help of mentors and owners, we can provide a much bigger platform for tennis players in our country.”
