New Delhi: Following the successful conduct of PSA and WISPA events in recent times, India has been awarded the 2011 World Cup hosting rights by the World Squash Federation (WSF).
The decision, taken by WSF in its Executive Board meeting on, is likely to give the game a major boost in the country.
Spearheaded by the Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu (SDAT), the biennial event will be held in Chennai in 2011, 2013 and 2015, while next year's final rounds will be played on an all-glass show court erected at the Express Avenue Mall, the largest shopping complex in south India.
The first edition, to be named as SDAT WSF World Cup, will take place next year from March 8-12, a WSF release said.
Sixteen national teams featuring top players from all over the world will compete, with the format allowing two men and one woman to participate.
Strong squash nations like Australia, Egypt, England, France, Malaysia, Netherlands and hosts India are expected to vye for the title.
The Tamil Nadu government is contributing a total of USD one million for the next five years for the event whose prize money is USD 125,000, with USD 50,000 going to the winning team.
"Not only is this exciting event a great boost for India, with the opportunity of watching top stars competing in the flesh and on TV, but the bigger picture is that we have added an important international event to our shop-window," said a delighted World Squash Federation president N. Ramachandran.
"We are eagerly looking forward to hosting the world's best squash players in Chennai," said TNSRA secretary general Srivatsan Subramaniam.
WSF chief executive Andrew Shelley added: "We see it as essential to work with the men's and women's Tours to maximise our media impact and to provide a full range of world titles for our sport.
"The World Cup is the only event in the squash calendar in which we have a single competition for both men and women.
Hosting a tournament that is staged every two years, it's a major step forward.
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