Indian shuttlers set to profit, as sports equipment giants lock horns

K Srikanth in action

Chinese sports equipment giants, Li Ning are going all out to rope in top Indian shuttlers. India has emerged as the poaching battleground for racket sports manufacturing giants Yonex and Li Ning.

After netting a big fish in the form of PV Sindhu, Li Ning are believed to have already signed K Srikanth and Arundhati Pantawante; while are also in process of finalising RMV Gurusaidutt and a host of other premier shuttlers.

Yonex is an established Japanese brand and the rise in the quality of players has only prompted the two to promote their products on a war footing here. That competition though is good news for players as they are assured of substantial financial benefits.

Thailand Open Grand Prix Gold winner, Srikanth; who was previously with Yonex, has already signed for Li Ning. The talented youngster was the best Indian men’s singles player last year on the international circuit and also became the first Indian to win a GP Gold title outside India. A product of the the Gopichand Academy; he recently won the men’s singles title during the Senior Nationals at New Delhi beating practice partner Gurusaidutt.

National Games gold medalist, Arundhati, has been rewarded for her consistent performances on the national and international tournaments in the last few months. Sporty Solutionz, who are officially managing all the deals between the players and Li Ning, are delighted with the current signings and are determined to rope in more players.

Sporty Solutionz and Gurusaidutt are both tight-lipped about the deal, but sources say the offer is almost final and the Hyderabadi may sign the deal before he leaves for the Korea Open Super Series next week.