Top badminton star and World No.4 Juliane Schenk, who will be playing for Pune Pistons in the Indian Badminton League, said she was delighted to be part of the world's richest badminton league as a concept "that could bring new perspective to badminton in general".
"For the first time in badminton history, there is a league where teams can buy players and bid for them at an auction. The IBL opens up the market and brings new perspective not only to players, but also to the sport in general," said the 30-year-old German.
Juliane is currently training in Hong Kong for the World Championship in China next month.
"The concept of auctioning players is common to soccer and cricket, but the IBL has introduced an interesting dimension to badminton by creating a new value for players in the market," said Juliane, who finished runners-up in the 2013 India Open.
"I think one of the biggest challenges will be to form a strong team with different players coming from different countries. As you have five matches in each team encounter and almost each two days, getting the team into the rhythm with hectic travelling will be the key. The team which can connect the players and the coaches well with each other will stand a good chance of winning," she said.
The 2011 World Championship bronze medallist dismissed any suggestion of being under pressure in the IBL.
"I have many good memories of playing in India and I'll simply try my best to enjoy each single match and also help my team-mates to perform. But yes, playing Indian players on home soil will always be challenging as I guess they won't lack any motivation," she said.
