Goemkarponn desk
PANAJI:
Flying Gravity, owned by Achut Naik and Kishore Bandekar, emerged as the champions of the Ultimate Badminton League (UBL) 2024, securing a resounding 150-139 victory over Sparkling Stars, owned by Yogiraj Kamat, in the thrilling finale.
The Ultimate Badminton League (UBL) is an annual league championship which aims to elevate the standard of badminton competition in Goa and foster professionalism in the sport, bringing together top-notch talent, passionate team owners, and ardent badminton fans for an unparalleled sporting experience.
This year’s edition, held over Saturday and Sunday, witnessed intense battles between 132 shuttlers from six teams, ultimately crowning Flying Gravity as the champions of the fourth edition of Ultimate Badminton League.
In a riveting contest comprising 10 events, with each event consisting of 15 points, Flying Gravity showcased exceptional skill and strategy to secure victory over Sprkling Stars. Ace Raqueteers, owned by Vikas Nanu, claimed the third spot by defeating Priority Titans with a score of 150-140. Goan Rebels owned by Praveen Shenoy and Asher’s Smashers owned by Ruby Realtors were the two other teams that competed in the League. Throughout the league, six formidable teams competed fiercely for the prestigious UBL Trophy and a significant cash prize pool of Rs 414,000/-. Yash Desai was awarded the Outstanding Men’s Player of the League, while Amit Kakkar received the award for Outstanding Veterans Player.
The much-anticipated 4th edition of the Ultimate Badminton League was organized by the Goa Sports Club and Chicalim Badminton Club, under the auspices of the Goa Badminton Association.
During the League Stage, Flying Gravity stood out with four wins out of five matches, while Sparkling Stars, Priority Titans, and Ace Raqueteers each secured three wins, setting the stage for an exhilarating finale.
The following are the Prize-winning squads:
Winners:
Flying Gravity Squad: Achut Naik and Kishore Bandekar (Team Owners), Sunny Sawant (Captain), Aryaman Saraf (Vice Captain), Aloisius Rodrigues, Asif Khan, Baljit Dogra, Devang Metha, Ganesh Pai Vernekar, Kamlesh Kanji, Karan Naik, Mahesh Kandkura, Mahesh Singh Bhandari, Manish Patel, Minar Pandit, Navin Palyekar, Pradeep Dhond, Rudra Phadte, Shamsudeen C K, Siddharth Hazra, Soham Mandrekar, Vijay Kumar, Yash Desai, and Yatish Devidas.
Runners Up:
Sparkling Stars Squad: Yogiraj Kamat (Team Owner), Karan Dhavaskar (Captain), Aditya Dessai (Vice Captain), Anuj Vernekar, Dattaprasad Parab, Haresh Chari, Jaywant Saraf, Kewal Sawant, Macchindra Shinde, Manav Shetgaonkar, Nilesh Kunkalekar, Ninad Kamat, Parag Chauhan, Prasad Patil, Saiesh Prabhu, Sashibhusan Sahoo, Satyendra Kumar, Shalil George, Shantaram Raikar, Swapnil Mahadeshwar, Unmesh Naik, and Valanko Dias.
Third Place:
Ace Raqueteers Squad: Vikas Nanu (Team Owner), Navneet Nasnodkar (Captain), Manish Pankhania (Vice Captain), Alex Colaco, Amey Desai, Amit Kakkar, Ashwin Chodankar, Atish Chodankar, Ayub C K, Ayush Kamal, Divyesh Shirsat, Gaurang Bhangui, Geetesh Dangui, Kashinath Jalmi, Kunal Sanvordekar, Mahesh Caisucar, Musthafa C A, Pankaj Naik, Pranav Naik, Rahul Deswal, Sahil Sayed, Sameer Sangodkar, and Vishal Shirodkar.
Enclosed – Photograph of Flying Gravity Squad lifting the prestigious UBL Trophy, in presence of dignitaries.
Seen in pic – UBL Organising President Praveen Shenoy handing over the UBL Trophy to Flying Gravity Team Owners, Captain Sunny Sawant, Vice Captain Aryaman Saraf and squad. Gracing the occasion were GBA Officials Narahar Thakur (President), Manoj Patil (President, North Goa District BadmintoN Association) Sandeep Heble(Secretary, GBA), Referee Roy Ataide, NIS Badminton Coach Vinayak Kamat, Mrs Vidya Patil, Yogiraj Kamat (Sports promoter) among others.