India is now a member of the 2026 Pickleball World Cup. The tournament organisers sent an invitation to the Indian Pickleball Association (IPA).
The marquee tournament will be held in Asia for the first time, with Da Nang, Vietnam hosting the competition from August 30 to September 6, 2026.
According to the IPA's official invitation, India will compete in five categories: Open, Senior, Junior, Kids and Master. The tournament organisers have also invited the Indian delegation to attend the Parade of Nations on September 2.
The official communication is expected to clear things up about India’s representation at the tournament. The Indian Pickleball Association, which is officially the National Sports Federation for pickleball, has maintained that the official Indian national teams for the World Cup are being selected and sent exclusively by the IPA.
The association has also opposed claims that multiple delegations would represent India at the tournament. Players can, according to an IPA source, participate in individual international events available to them, but there will be only one official Team India delegation at the Pickleball World Cup.
The invitation from the tournament organizers has further strengthened the IPA’s position regarding India’s official representation.
The IPA has already announced the squad for the Open category. The eight-member team is led by Harsh Mehta and consists of Arjun Singh, Anish Frolian, Aman Patel, Mihika Yadav, Aaliyah Ebrahim, Pearl Amalsadiwala and Naomi Amalsadiwala.
India’s junior and kids squads have also been announced after the inaugural Junior Pickleball Championship in Ahmedabad.
The Under-18 team will be captained by Arjun Singh and include Aditya Singh, Dev Shah, Naomi Amalsadiwala, Purvansh Patel, Vivaan Patel, Ashritha Raju and Diya Mattipati.
The Under-14 squad will be led by Veer Shah. Viransh Chopra, Aarin Ballani, Mahika Rathod, Maansi Kartik and Aashritaa Shah are included.
The IPA will also announce the squads for the 50-plus and 60-plus categories soon.
India will enter the 2026 edition with confidence after finishing seventh at the last Pickleball World Cup held in Florida in 2025. The Indian team won 25 medals under IPA, including eight gold, eight silver and nine bronze medals.
With the sport growing rapidly in India, the upcoming World Cup is expected to provide another major platform for Indian players to compete against the best talent from around the world.
The official invitation has now ended the uncertainty over India’s participation, with the IPA set to lead the country’s challenge across multiple age groups and categories in Da Nang.
