How Tennis Premier League is boosting sponsorship deals to nurture talent

Tennis in India has historically faced challenges in terms of infrastructure, exposure, and recognition compared to more popular sports like cricket. While India has produced notable players like Leander Paes, Mahesh Bhupathi, and Sania Mirza, tennis still struggles to capture the mass appeal seen in other sports. However, in recent years, there has been a significant shift in the landscape, with more focus on nurturing young talent and increasing visibility for the sport. The Tennis Premier League (TPL), co-founded by Kunal Thakkur and Mrunal Jain, is one such initiative that seeks to change the game by providing a platform for both established and budding tennis players to showcase their skills, while also creating an ecosystem that supports long-term growth for tennis in India.

In this exclusive interview with Adgully, Kunal Thakkur and Mrunal Jain discuss their journey of building the TPL from the ground up, the league’s unique format, and the role of corporate partnerships in ensuring its sustainability. They share their vision of developing Indian tennis by bringing in top international players and forging connections with brands and broadcasters to maximize exposure. With a clear focus on talent development, including initiatives like the Race to Gold, the duo outlines how TPL is positioning itself as a key player in shaping the future of Indian tennis.

What inspired you to start the Tennis Premier League, and what was your original vision for the league?

We had seen how IPL had made cricket popular and it was helping the development of the sport all over India. Similarly, with the badminton league coming in, badminton players were benefiting. Then there was kabbadi that came in. So that was the whole thought that why not something for tennis where, all the players get a chance to showcase their talent and play with the top players of the world and at the same time somewhere supporting them monetarily because like, when the league happens, there’s a lot of corporate interest that comes in, there's a lot of funds that come in which can be diverted towards the players and that was the need of the hour.

What were some of the biggest challenges you faced while establishing TPL, and how did you overcome them?

The biggest challenge was because we changed the format from a set format to a point format. The format was very important to click amongst the players, amongst the viewers because this format has never been played worldwide. Educating the players, educating the audience was a challenge. But slowly and steadily people started enjoying the game. People started seeing a lot of variation. In an hour they could see four different sets of variations of the game. That’s what got the hook of the audience also. And the interest level of the players also. And it was a bit challenging for players also because it was a very fast paced format and within 10 to 12 minutes one variation of the game used to be over. That’s where every player used to be on their toes and used to fight it out for every point.

How do you ensure the sustainability of TPL in the long run? What initiatives have you taken to grow and retain the league’s fanbase?

We have seen several leagues coming in, creating a noise and then not being able to sustain. Keeping all that in mind, we are always taking small steps.  We have been very practical because we’ve been connected with the sport for many years. We’ve always been taking small steps and growing year by year to sustain what we have. Talking about initiatives, of course, we broke in the top players of India over the last few years. This year we have Rohan Bopanna and Sumit Nagal playing in the league. Along with that, of course, we have international players like Hugo Gaston. We also have Max Purcell, who recently won the doubles Grand Slam. So, we’ve got these big international players joining in. At the same time, we’ve got Bollywood celebrities owning teams, being the faces. We’ve got many prominent personalities endorsing the league.

One of TPL’s goals is to nurture budding tennis talent in India. How do you identify and support young players through the league?

Initially in the first three, four years, we had talent days where we would select players and get them to be a part of the league and give them a chance to watch these players closely participate in the TPL plus tournaments. But what we realized and what we thought is we needed a longer plan. We needed a plan which is year round. We needed a platform, we needed a road map for the kids. So, that’s when we started the Race to Gold initiative. Now, through this initiative, we’ve tied up with various state associations all over India and there are tournaments being conducted in every district. And every district, number one gets to play the masters. And then the player who wins the race to gold, basically, who’s the number one in the state, we are providing a scholarship of Rs 75,000. But more than the, more than the money or the gifts, what we are providing them as an experience, we are inviting them for the TPL and we giving them an opportunity to play a match against one of the top players of TPL. So that is an experience that they will never forget and that we feel will definitely motivate them and encourage them to work harder. And the end goal of course is to create an Olympic champion for tennis.

How important is corporate sponsorship for the growth of TPL? What kinds of partnerships have been most valuable?

The most prominent partnership has been with Yonex Sunrise, which has really been from the initial days. Then there has been Clear Premium Water, which came forward to support a non-brigading sport as hydration partner and had a vision that sport which needs to grow, needs to be promoted well and needs to be supported more.

We’ve had Kotak Mahindra Bank in the second year, and Chroma which was with us for the last three years. Then we had Noise and Biba. The goal is not about a brand logo to be on a checkered backdrop or to be on the LED pairing meter. It’s beyond that. For a brand, it’s about what they get. If they spend Rs 100, what is the value that they get? Beyond Rs 100 is what a brand looks for. And with TPL, it has always been that when you spend Rs 100, you get back Rs 200.

What steps have you taken to increase media coverage and visibility for TPL?

If you look at IPL, it is successful because of the broadcast rights it generates. IPL is successful because of the number of viewership that it gets. So, for any league to become successful, media is the key primary factor. Your broadcaster has to be the best; the partnership with Jio and Sports18 is a game changer for us.

What role do you think the government and private organizations should play in promoting tennis in the country?

For any sport to grow, government involvement is a must. We’ve been getting a lot of support from the AITA. We’ve been getting a lot of support from the government authorities, and they’ve all been very supportive. But of course, it would be appreciated if the government could come in and sponsor a few players. Because what the player wants in the long run is good sponsorship to be able to travel – for any tennis player, he/she is traveling nine months in a year, and a lot of money that is needed for that. The player doesn’t travel alone, he needs his complete team with him, which includes his coach, physio, mental trainer, etc. And to fund that team, of course, you need a sponsor.

If the government can come in with initiatives where they can support the top players of the country, or even if corporate houses can forward and support the players, it would make a lot of difference. Of course, there are several corporations today who are supporting sportspersons from different fields. In fact, one of our team owners has been supporting three top players from India.

Where do you see Indian tennis in the next five years, and how do you think TPL can contribute to that growth?

We already have seven players in the top 150 in the doubles, which is a very good achievement for doubles. We have Sumit Nagal in the top 100 in the singles. In order to make tennis even more popular, we need at least five players in the top hundred. And that is what I think should be our aim collectively. To achieve that, we are aiming to create an environment and the ecosystem where we can produce players of that level.

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