IJPL Talent Hunt: Telugu star Laxmi to own Hyderabad Hawks; Kannada stars Aindrita and Diganth to co-own Bangalore Stars

New Delhi, September 16, 2017:The Indian Junior Players League Talent Hunt (IJPL Talent Hunt) is proud to reveal its first woman-owner in the path-breaking league for upcoming cricketers. Telugu starLaxmi Manchu, who has also starred in American television series, Desperate Housewives and Las Vegas, comes on board as the owner of Hyderabad Hawks franchise.

In another major boost to the IJPL Talent Hunt, Kannada film’s hit onscreen pair, Aindrita Ray and Diganthhave padded up for their maiden cricket venture as the co-owners of Bangalore Stars franchise.

IJPL Talent Hunt’s managing director, Dr Dinesh Kapoor expressed that he was extremely proud to reveal Laxmi Manchu as the owner of Hyderabad Hawks and Aindnrita Ray and Digant as the co-owner of Bangalore Stars and welcomed them to the family of IJPL Talent Hunt. 

Kapoor said, “In addition to having film-maker and actor Arbaaz Khan and actor Rajeev Khandelwal, the introduction of Telugu star Laxmi Manchu and Kannada film icons Aindrita Ray and Diganth speaks a lot about the level of the IJPL Talent Hunt. Their stardom will be an honourable addition to the existing group of owners of teams in IJPL Talent Hunt.” 

Laxmi Manchu has carved a niche for herself as an actor, TV host and film producer. She has worked in 20 feature films in India and the US, besides acting in American television series, Las Vegas, Desperate Housewives, Mystery ER to name a few of them. 

Manchu said, “I’m super excited to be part of IJPL Talent Hunt and I hope my team, Hyderabad Hawk goes all out to win the Cup in Dubai.”

Aindrita Ray received critical acclaim for essaying the role of a mentally-challenged girl in the Kannada film, Manasaare, and has worked in successful films down south. She is already connected to cricket as the brand ambassador of Celebrity Cricket League. Diganth Manchale, popularly known as Diganth, is in the top league of Kannada actors.

The IJPL Talent Hunt will culminate in a grand competition between 16 teams at Dubai’s state-of-the-art International Cricket Stadium, from September 19-29, 2017. Star cricketer, Gautam Gambhir is the Brand Ambassador of IJPL Talent Hunt. All the IJPL Talent Hunt matches will be brought to the cricket-crazy fans via LIVE streaming on India’s No.1 Sports App, Sports Flashes, and online on sportsflashes.

The young guns will have plenty at stake in the path-breaking IJPL Talent Hunt as the 16 franchise teams will slog it out for the winner’s trophy, with the champions set to take home a prize money of INR 21 lakh and INR 11 lakh for the runners-up. The man of the tournament will be sent to play in minor county cricket in the UK. 

List of 16 Franchises in 2017 IJPL Talent Hunt:

Gujarat Greats, Kolkata Strikers, Bangalore Stars, Assam Rangers, Pune Panthers, Delhi Dashers, Ranchi Boosters, Punjab Tigers, Dehradun Rockers, UP Heroes, Hyderabad Hawks, Chennai Champs, Rajasthan Roarers, Mumbai Masters, MP Warriors, and Haryana Hurricanes.

Format of the 2017 IJPL Talent Hunt: The 16 teams have been divided into four groups where all the teams will play against each other once. The top-2 teams from each group with maximum points will qualify for the quarterfinals, followed by the winning teams’ progress to the semi-finals and further to the final. 

IJPL Press release