The Hyderabad Open 2025, the first leg of the World Pickleball League (WPBL) On Tour, concluded in style over the weekend, marking a successful start to the six-city series. Organized by WPBL in partnership with franchise Hyderabad Superstars, the event brought together more than 250 players over three action-packed days, competing across 60 categories with a prize pool of Rs. 15 lakhs.
The tournament featured competitions for all age groups – from U-18 to 50+ divisions – with DUPR-based draws ensuring fair and exciting contests. Top stars from WPBL Season 1, including Hyderabad Superstars’ Kuldip Mahajan, headlined the professional categories. Kuldip won the Pro Men’s Singles title, while Anuja Maheshwari (Pro Women’s Singles), Vanshik Kapadia (Pro Men’s Doubles and Mixed Doubles), Vrushali Thakare (Pro Women’s and Mixed Doubles), Isha Lakhani (Pro Women’s Doubles), and Tejas Mahajan (Pro Men’s Doubles) also emerged champions.
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.”
Franchise co-owners Rakul Preet Singh and Jackky Bhagnani said, “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), said, “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, who were semi-finalists in WPBL Season 1, are using this initiative to strengthen year-round engagement with fans and players in the city.
With Hyderabad setting the tone, WPBL On Tour will now move to the national capital for The Delhi Open, scheduled from August 28–31, 2025.
