India, Dec. 10 -- For one full week, the Indian Pickleball League held in Delhi's KD Jadhav Indoor Hall, turned the arena into a frenzy of sound, colour and celebrity sparkle. Actors Malavika Mohanan, Nitanshi Goel, Nushrratt Bharuccha, Sonam Bajwa, Kriti Kharbanda, and Harshvardhan Rane showed up courtside throughout the week, giving the debut league glamour and visibility. With Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta inaugurating the league and Union Minister Kiren Rijiju arriving for the finale, the sporting event turned into a cultural moment in the making. Adding to the glam, five ambassadors brought personality and polish courtside: Femina Miss India World 2024 Nikita Porwal, Femina Miss India Rajasthan 2024 Vaishnavi Sharma, Femina Miss India 2024 Second Runner Up Aayushi Dholakia, Femina Miss India Kerala 2024 Akshatha Das, and Miss Supranational Asia 2023 Pragnya Ayyagari. The six teams - Gurgaon Capital Warriors, Mumbai Smashers, Bengaluru Blasters, Chennai Super Warriors, Hyderabad Royals and Lucknow Leopards - featured international players including World No. 3 Quang Duong, Megan Fudge DeHeart, and Phuc Huynh and Indian players like Aditya Ruhela, Rakshikha Ravi and Shreya Chakraborty, among others. Mumbai Smashers lifted the trophy by beating Hyderabad Royals, closing out the first-ever Indian Pickleball League,. The finale also delivered a milestone announcement for the sport: DUPR (Dynamic Universal Pickleball Rating) was officially declared as the country's rating system, aligning India with the global ranking framework. As the force behind the Indian Pickleball League, the Times Group MD Vineet Jain framed the moment with absolute clarity. "I believe that pickleball has the potential of becoming a mass participation sport. In an era where the youth are glued to their phones, pickleball can become the first sport one picks up in their youth. This sport can be a catalyst that leads to a fitness and sporting revolution across the globe."...