| Pro Panja League | |
| Last Season: | 2023 Pro Panja League |
| Sport: | Arm wrestling |
| Founded: | 2020 |
| Inaugural: | 2023 |
| Motto: | Aapki Kismat, Aapke Haath (Your Fate, Your Hands)Bharat Ka Khel (India's Game) |
| Teams: | 6 |
| Venue: | Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium, New Delhi, India |
| Country: | India |
| Tv: | Sony Sports Network |
| Streaming: | Fancode |
| Website: | https://propanja.com/ |
The Pro Panja League (PPL)[1] is a professional Indian arm wrestling league which had its first season start on 28 July 2023 and end on 13 August 2023. There are separate competition categories for men, women, and specially abled (disabled) players,[2] and the tournament took place at Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in New Delhi.[3]
The name of the tournament is based on "Panja", a word used in the Indian subcontinent to refer to arm wrestling.[4]
Starting in 2020, there were some exhibition events, tournaments, and matches held,[5] which acquired about 275 million views on social media. Before the first season, there was a ranking tournament held at Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, with the top 18 arm wrestlers in each of the 10 weight categories qualifying for the first season.[6] The first season was won by the Kochi KDs.[7]
Each team plays each other twice during the round-robin stage, and then the top four teams (based on total points scored) enter the playoffs, which consist of two semi-finals (1st vs 4th, and 2nd vs 3rd) and then a final.
Two players in the same weight category compete to overpower each other and score points over several rounds of a "bout". In an "under card"/"prelim" bout, three rounds are contested, while in a "main card" bout, five rounds are contested. Three under card bouts and three main card bouts take place within a single match between two teams, with each bout featuring a different pair of opponents from the two teams; at the end of the game, the team whose players scored more points wins the match. In an under card bout, the player who wins two out of three rounds earns one point, while the loser gains nothing; in a main card bout, each player earns one point for every round they win. In the final, five main card bouts are contested.[8]
At the start of each round, the players offer each other one of their hands while keeping their elbows on a specially designed table, with a strap being bound around the two players' offered hands if necessary to avoid hand slippage. The players then attempt to force their opponent's hand to hit designated "touch pads" on the table underneath their hands to win the round. There are various rule violations which competitors can perform which can also result in penalties against them.[9] Two bonus points are gained in main card bouts if a player wins the bout without their opponent scoring a point (i.e. a 3-0 victory earns 5 points). Bouts must be completed within 30 minutes. An additional "challenge round" can be called for in main card bouts, in which the player calling for the challenge round can win five bonus points for their team if they beat their opponent within 10 seconds; however, if the player calling for the challenge round fails to win within 10 seconds, then their opponent earns the five bonus points, and the player who called for the challenge round earns either zero points or one point depending on whether they won the round.[10] [11]
Six teams compete in the league, which are Kiraak Hyderabad, Mumbai Muscle, Rohtak Rowdies, Ludhiana Lions, Baroda Badshahs, and Kochi KD's. 180 players in ten different weight categories were drafted for the first season,[12] with six weight categories reserved for men, three for women, and one for physically challenged participants.[13]
The winning team will win, while the runner-up team will win, with equal money distributed in all competition categories (men, women, and specially abled).[14]
PPL will be broadcast on Sony Sports Network. In the United States, it will be broadcast on Willow TV.[15]