Cricket-Focused Startup Hudle Secures $2.5 Million in Funding

Hudle, a platform for sports communities, has secured $2.5 million in a Series A funding round spearheaded by Sky Impact Capital. Other participants included Physis Capital, Atrium Venture, Mahesh Bhupathi (a 12-time Grand Slam champion and investor), Gaurav Kapur (a TV presenter and producer), and the founders of Blue Tokai (Shivam Shahi) and Nitro Commerce (Umair Mohammed).

Hudle, established by Suhail Narain (Founder & CEO), Arjun Singh Verma (Co-Founder & COO), and Sonam Taneja (Co-Founder & Head of Business Development), facilitates effortless discovery, booking, and engagement in popular sports such as badminton, pickleball, padel, football, and box cricket.

The startup asserts that it has a network comprising 2,000 sports venues and 1.5 million.  It asserts that it has seen a 3.5 times increase in gross transaction value and a 2.5 times increase in revenue over the past year.

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Hudle stated that it will utilize the funds to accelerate product innovation, including features for seamless booking, match discovery, and performance tracking, aimed at enhancing the player experience with a particular emphasis on pickleball and padel, the two fastest-growing sports in India and worldwide.

In August, the startup will launch what it claims is India’s first rating system to assist players in tracking their progress and connecting with others of comparable skill levels.  Additionally, it seeks to broaden its network of venue partners in Tier 1/2/3 cities to satisfy the increasing demand for community and recreational sports.

“At Hudle, we sincerely think that participating in sports should be as effortless and routine as going out for coffee.  It is this that motivates us: facilitating play, connection, and activity for people throughout India.  We’re adding more than 300 pickleball courts each month, and we’ve observed that people love the sport once they give it a try.  “This fundraise isn’t just about scale — it’s about doubling down on the experience, the tech, and the community,” Suhail Narain said.

“Hudle is transforming the recreational sports economy in India.  Its platform, which is free of friction, allows tens of thousands of sports lovers to find and reserve courts in just seconds, transforming fitness into a social practice.  Each year, 300 million Indians are burdened by lifestyle diseases, and with wellness expenditures exceeding $98 billion, the growth potential is vast.  “In the past 18 months, we have utilized our value creation playbook to assist Hudle in scaling,” stated Aakash Sachdev, Founder & Managing Partner at Sky Impact Capital.