3rd National Pickleball Tournament successfully held at Panipat

3rd National Pickleball Tournament successfully held at Panipat
==============================================================

Maharashtra emerged victorious in the recently held 3rd National Pickleball
Tournament held at Panipat, Haryana from 26th-28th June, 2015. Besides
Maharashtra, teams from Haryana, Delhi, Bihar, Pondicherry, Jharkhand,
Madhya Pradesh, Dadra Nagar Haveli (DNH), Mumbai and Rajashtan participated
in this 3-day-tournament, which was conducted in the outdoor court of
Shivaji Stadium in Model Town, Panipat.

Mayor of Panipat City Shri Suresh Verma gave away Medals to winners and
every winning player got souvenirs from the hands of Chief Guest  Bijendra
Punia, President of Haryana Pickleball Association.

Atherva of Maharashtra was winner in the Men's Singles category whereas
Mahesh and Garima of Maharashtra were winners of Mixed Doubles. Over 150
players plus 50 officials and volunteers put their efforts to make this 3rd
National Tournament a grand success.

The first tournament held in 2013 in Mumbai saw 125 players from 7 states
whereas for the second tournament in the year 2014, there were 135 players
from 9 states. So compared to last 2 tournaments, this year's participation
was well spread and hence encouraging. The most highlighting aspect of this
year's tournament was that every state team had Girls team of 5 players.
It's quite evident that Pickleball is spreading its wings all across the
country.

This 3-day tournament was successful due to efforts taken by team of
dedicated volunteers led by Shri Rajindra Deswal, Kapil Rathi and
Deependra. The entire tournament was effectively monitored under able
directorship of Shri Rahul Wani and his team lead by Chetan Kate and
Krishana Gupta.

Haryana State Pickleball Association in collaboration with All India
Pickleball Association jointly hoisted this 3rd National tournament, first
and second being held at Mumbai in the years 2013 and 2014.

Doordarshan DD Sports Delhi took special efforts to cover all the final
matches. Team lead by Mr. Soni came all along from Delhi to Panipat to
cover the event. This was 3rd consecutive year DD Sports has lent its
support to AIPA's National Tournament. Also, print media from Panipat,
Indore and Mumbai also took serious note of this event.

Shri Sameer Dixit, Joint Secretary of All India Pickleball Association
along with senior official of Delhi Doordarshan Shri Ganesh Iyer and
well-known Media Consultant, Shri Nitin Sethi were the chief guest for this
sport extravaganza. Sushant Joshi, Chairman of National Executive Council
of AIPA was also present at the opening ceremony of the tournament.



What is Pickleball?
==================
A Paddle Sport created for all ages and skill levels. The rules are simple
and the game is easy for beginners to learn, but can develop into a quick,
fast-paced, competitive game for experienced players.
 The Basics:
- A fun sport that combines many elements of Lawn Tennis, Badminton and
Table Tennis
- Played both indoors or outdoors on a Badminton-sized court and a slightly
modified Center Net.
- Played with a Paddle and a Plastic Hollow Ball.

About All India Pickleball Association (AIPA):
==============================================

All India Pickleball Association (AIPA) is a governing registered body set
for the promotion of Pickleball in India. AIPA is affialted to
International Federation of Pickleball, USA.