Trials aim to provide youth with a professional sports career and curb drug abuse trends.
Chandigarh: The GM Box Cricket Association (GMBCA) announced the launch of Mega Tennis Ball Box Cricket Trials across Punjab and the Tricity region during a press conference held at the Chandigarh Press Club on Monday. The initiative aims to select 4,000 talented boys and girls for the Season 1 Players Pool under the GMBCA Mega Punjab Trials.
Addressing the media, GMBCA Founder Baba Inder Preet Singh described the initiative as a formally organized and recognized grassroots sports platform designed to create a positive social impact. He stated, “This initiative will help steer Punjab’s youth away from drug addiction, the increasing trend of going abroad, and income-related challenges by offering them a professional sports career.”
According to Singh, the trials will be conducted from January 2026 across all districts of Punjab for participants aged 15 to 45 years, with a registration fee of ₹900. He added that selected players could earn ₹40,000 to ₹60,000 per month, while annual earnings through league matches, tournaments and endorsements could range between ₹40 lakh and ₹60 lakh.
He emphasized that the initiative aims to establish tennis ball box cricket as a sustainable and respectable livelihood option for aspiring players.
GMBCA has also appealed to cricket tournament organizers, academies and coaches across all 23 districts of Punjab to associate with the organization as District Coordinators to strengthen grassroots participation.
During the press conference, UP State Coordinator Rakesh Rastogi and Delhi State Coordinator Sukhvinder Singh Sokhi shared experiences of enthusiastic youth participation and strong responses in their respective states. Coordination committee members Mukesh Chauhan, Sukhvinder Singh (Sukhi), Gurpreet Kaur and Rahul were also present.
The association announced that trials will be conducted in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Chandigarh, Haryana, Rajasthan, Jammu & Kashmir, and Maharashtra. The detailed schedule will be released shortly on www.gmbca.org.
Two Professional Platforms for Selected Players
Selected players will be offered opportunities through two structured platforms.
Platform 1 will be the Gali Mohalla Cricket League (GMCL) – Season 1 (2025–26), where selected batsmen, bowlers, wicketkeepers and all-rounders will compete. State-level teams will be formed by GMBCA’s expert committee to participate in district, state, national and international leagues. The league will award ₹11 lakh to the national winning team and ₹5 lakh to the runner-up.
Platform 2 will involve the creation of category-wise players’ pools followed by professional training camps. Player profiles will be shared with national and international tennis ball box cricket tournament organizers, franchise owners and cricket boards.
Through this platform, players will be able to participate in competitions in India and abroad, earning income through match fees, endorsements and professional contracts, thereby building a long-term career in tennis ball box cricket.
