Pune

The game of Kho Kho is set to enter a new era as a total of India's 143 best players were hand-picked by six franchises on Thursday for the inaugural edition of the Ultimate Kho Kho in Pune.

India's first-ever franchise-based Kho-Kho league, promoted by Chairman of Dabur India, Amit Burman in collaboration with the Kho Kho Federation of India, will be played from August 14 to September 4 Pune.

 A total of 240 registered players were part of the draft process.

They were divided into four categories, A, B, C and D, according to their performances in international matches, the recent National Championships and evaluation conducted by the league.

The six fanchises are Chennai Quick Guns, Gujarat Giants, Mumbai Khiladis, Odisha Juggernauts, Rajasthan Warriors and Telugu Yoddhas.

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A total of 34 matches will be played over the period of 21 days in the first season of the league. The knockout matches will consist of qualifier and eliminator matches.