In line with the COVID-19 protocols, the country is gradually laying out scopes for various sports to take place, once again. So as per the reports of Handball Federation of India (HFI), the inaugural edition of the Premier Handball League (PHL) will be held from December 24 to January 10 and the matches are set to take place at the Sawai Mansingh Indoor Stadium in Jaipur. The Indian Handball Team is ranked 32 on the global rankings and the country has been earmarked as the next big destination for handball by The International Handball Federation.
6 teams consisting of 14 players each; 84 players are set to take part in the league
The six teams representing the six states, will include Telangana Tigers, UP Icons, Maharashtra Handball Hustlers, KingHawks Rajasthan, Bengal Blues and Punjab Pitbulls. Each team consists of 14 players and over 80 players are set to take part in the league and the inaugural season will be an 18-day men’s event consisting of 30 league matches, followed by 3 knockout games.
On Saturday, the president of HFI, Jagan Mohan Rao Arishnapally, was quoted saying, “This is going to be a significant moment in the Indian handball history as the Premier Handball League will infuse fresh breath to the sport which has immense potential at grassroot level.” He further added, “The league will bring exciting competition among the players as well as help build handball as a brand. Handball already enjoys huge popularity globally and as a federation our vision is to create a similar holistic growth story in India too.”
The launch was convened by PHL co-promoters Aseem Merchant and Manu Agrawal and CEO Mrinalini Sharma, along with the HFI Vice President, Anandeshwar Pandey and Rajiv Arora, Vice President of Rajasthan Pradesh Congress. The PHL India Sports Private Limited is the official license holder of the league. Sony Pictures Sports Network and FanCode have been tagged as the broadcasters for the league, with live streaming available on Airtel TV, Jio TV and Sony Liv.
