Goh V Shem and Tan Wee Kiong
The world number one Malaysian pair will be seen in action in PBL 2 Reuters

Competition: Premier Badminton League 2017

Date: 1 to 14 January, 2017

Time: 9pm SGT/6:30pm SGT/1pm GMT (onwards on all matchdays)

TV Schedule: In Singapore, there is no TV coverage.

Live streaming: Hotstar

Live updates will be available on PBL's official website.

Overview

The second edition of Premier Badminton League kickstarts at the Gachibowli Stadium in Hyderabad on 1 January. Six teams - Awadhe Warriors, Bengaluru Blasters, Chennai Smashers, Delhi Aces, Hyderabad Hunters,Mumbai Rockets - consisting top-ranked shuttlers from across the globe will battle for the coveted title.

Superstar shuttlers including Carolina Marin, PV Sindhu, BWF Superseries Finals winner Viktor Axelsen, China Open winner Jan O Jorgensen went under the hammer at the auction that was held in November 2015. The defending Olympic champion trumped the likes Sindhu, Saina and Jorgensen as she was bought by the Hunters for a whopping price of $92,615 (INR 61,50,000).

Opening day delight

The opening day will itself witness a high-octane clash as Smasher's PV Sindhu and Hunters' Carolina Marin go head-to-head in what is touted as Rio Olympics Women's singles final rematch. Sung Ji-Hyun surprised a few when she was sold for the second-highest price $90,347 (INR 60,00,000) 2016 runners-up Mumbai Rockets.

Tournament format

PBL 2 will witness a new game format, which will have players racing to 11 points instead of 21.Each team will have a tie with every other team in the tournament once in the group stages.

Each tie will have five matches - Men's singles 1, Men's singles 2, Women's singles, Men's doubles, Mixed doubles. A team can chose one of these five as their Trump match and winning it will give them an extra point but losing it will give them a negative point. One point will be awarded to each normal match win. Each match will have three 11-point games and the same player cannot play back-to-back matches.

How are the teams shaping up

Defending champions Aces look a strong unit and they have secured the services of Jorgensen and world number four Son Wan Ho. Dubai Superseries mixed doubles winners Goh V Shem and Wee Kiong Tan will ply their trade for the Warriors and Hunters, respectively.

Hunters boast a powerful line-up consisting of Wee Tan as well as Marin, Rajeev Ouseph, Sai Praneeth and Hong Kong Open runner-up Sameer Verma. Smashers also are looking good to go the distance this year with the likes of Sindhu, Tommy Sugiarto, Gabby Adcock, Tanongsak Saenboonsanak, Parupalli Kashyap and Chris Adcock in their ranks.

Tickets for the matches can be bought here. 

Complete Team List

Awadhe Warriors (Lucknow): Saina Nehwal, V Shem Goh, Srikanth Kidambi, Savitree Amitrapai, Wong Wing Ki Vincent, Rituparna Das, Bodin Isara, Markis Kido, Prajakta Sawant, Aditya Joshi

Bengaluru Blasters: Viktor Axelsen, Yoo Yeon Seong, Porntip Buranaprasertsuk, Boonsak Ponsana, Ruthvika Gadde, Sourabh Verma, Pranaav Chopra, Ko Sung Hyun, Sikki Reddy

Chennai Smashers: P V Sindhu, Tommy Sugiarto, Gabby Adcock, Tanongsak S, P Kashyap, Chris Adcock, Mads Pieler Kolding, B Sumeeth Reddy, Ramya Tulasi, Arundhati Pantawane

Delhi Acers: Jan o Jorgensen, Son Wan Ho, Jwala Gutta, Nithchaon Jindapol, Ivan Sozonov, Vladimir Ivanov, Akshay Dewalkar, K Maneesha, Akarshi Kashyap, Siril Verma

Hyderabad Hunters: Carolina Marin, Wee Kiong Tan, Chau Hoi Wah, Rajiv Ouseph, Sai Praneeth, Satwik Sairaj, Sameer Verma, Krishna Priya, Meghna J, Tan Boon Heong

Mumbai Rockets: Sung Ji Hyun, Lee Yong Dae, Nadiezda Zieba, Ajay Jayaram, Prannoy HS, Nipitphon Phusnhphupet, Manu Atri, Abhishek Yelegar, Vrushali G, Mohita Sehdev

TV Schedule

India: Star Sports

Full Schedule [All matches start at 9pm SGT onwards]

Tie Date Host city
Hyderabad v Chennai 1 January, Sunday Gachibowli Stadium, Hyderabad
Bengaluru v Delhi 1 January, Sunday Gachibowli Stadium, Hyderabad
Lucknow v Hyderabad 2 January, Monday Gachibowli Stadium, Hyderabad
Bangalore v Chennai 3 January, Tuesday Mumbai, SVP Stadium
Delhi v Mumbai 3 January, Tuesday Mumbai, SVP Stadium
Hyderabad v Mumbai 4 January, Wednesday Mumbai, SVP Stadium
Lucknow v Delhi 5 January, Thursday UP Badminton Association, Lucknow
Lucknow vs Mumbai 6 January, Friday UP Badminton Association, Lucknow
Bangalore vs Hyderabad 7 January, Saturday Koramangala Indoor Stadium, Bangalore
Delhi vs Chennai 8 January, Sunday Koramangala Indoor Stadium, Bangalore
Bangalore vs Mumbai 8 January, Sunday Koramanagala Indoor Stadium, Bangalore
Lucknow vs Bangalore 9 January, Monday Koramangala Indoor Stadium, Bangalore
Mumbai vs Chennai 10 January, Tuesday Koramangala Indoor, Stadium, Bangalore
Lucknow v Chennai 11 January, Wednesday Koramangala Indoor Stadium, Bangalore
Delhi vs Hyderabad 12 January, Thursday Siri Fort, New Delhi
Semi-final 1 and 2 13 January, Friday Siri Fort, New Delhi
Final 14 January, Saturday Siri Fort, New Delhi