New Delhi: The 20-month wait for the domestic badminton season gets over as Indian shuttlers get back into action with back-to-back senior-ranking Level 3 tournaments next month.

The season kicks off in Chennai with the first tournament from December 16 to 22, followed by another Level 3 tournament in Hyderabad from December 24 to 30. Both events carry prize money of Rs 10 lakh each, and are a part of the Badminton Association of India’s (BAI) new domestic format which was approved in 2019 but due to the pandemic was not introduced earlier. The last date of entry for the Chennai event is November 24, while that of Telangana is December 1.

BAI secretary Ajay K Singhania said that the domestic season begins with all Covid-related protocols in place, and that the players must carry RTPCR negative report. “Covid disrupted not just sports but life in general, but we are very pleased to announce the resumption of the Indian domestic badminton season. We have some world-class players and all the players getting back on court is great news for the entire badminton fraternity.”

The senior ranking tournaments are classified into three levels: Level 3 -- BAI Series Badminton Tournament (6 in a year), Level 2 – BAI Super Series Badminton Tournament (4 in a year), Level 1 - BAI Premier Super Series Badminton Tournament (2 in a year).

With a mammoth prize pool of 2.2 crores for the entire domestic senior ranking tournaments, Level 3 category tournaments are the preliminary events carrying a prize money of Rs 10 lakh, while Level 2 tournaments, to be played twice, have a purse of Rs 15 lakh each followed by a Premier tournament with a prize money of 25 lakh. Then there’s Nationals, with a prize purse of Rs 50 lakh. Apart from being financially lucrative to the players, the aim of the format is to make the domestic circuit increasingly competitive by allowing more players to break into the main circuit.