Malaysian badminton entering the big leagues

KUALA LUMPUR: An impressive league with big names and big money.
Welcome to Malaysia’s very own professional league - the Malaysia Purple League (MPL).
It will start this year, run from September to February, at the Lee Chong Wei Sports Arena and promises a total prize of RM2mil.
For a start, Malaysia’s superstar Lee Chong Wei and five-time world champion Lin Dan of China are set to be the main crowd pullers – with many more expected to grace the league like four-time world champions Cai Yun-Fu Haifeng of China, South Korea’s Lee Yong-dae and Indonesia’s Markis Kido.

A total of 12 clubs will battle it out with each club handled by Malaysia’s former greats like Lee Wan Wah, Datuk Misbun Sidek, Jalani Sidek, Ong Ewe Hock, Foo Kok Keong, Lim Pek Siah and Chor Hooi Yee. All the matches will be telecast live on Astro Arena (Channel 801), possibly reaching 3.9 million homes in Malaysia.
Each club can include up to four foreign players in a season and an auction of these players will be held later. A club can only bid on a maximum of two players in the top 32 bracket – to ensure the richer clubs do not monopolise the best players.
The format of play is different – each match in a tie will be played on a best of 11 points in three games.
What makes this league different from the ones in China, Indonesia and India is its emphasis on development.
Next year, the league will also concurrently host a league for players aged 19 and younger – creating a large pool of players with the hope of finding new talents.
The MPL was launched on Tuesday in the presence of Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin and world No. 1 Chong Wei.

More information: http://www.thestar.com.my/Sport/Badminton/2014/04/29/Malaysian-badminton-entering-the-big-leagues/