British Olympian Rajiv Ouseph is hoping that Team Derby’s big names come to the fore as they prepare to return to domestic action with the third season of the AJ Bell National Badminton League.

Captain Ouseph has been an ever-present part for Team Derby to date and is hoping that the squad, which includes fellow Team GB athletes Marcus Ellis and Lauren Smith, can regain the title they won in 2015.

The AJ Bell NBL returns next Monday with Team Derby taking on new side Bristol Jets in Match Week 2 the following month to kick-off their campaign and Ouseph is confident of a strong campaign in 2016/17.

“I feel like if we have a good team out, with the like of Marcus and Lauren added, I think we have a very strong chance of doing well but there’s other strong teams in the competition,” he said.

“It’s about playing well on the day. It’s a very unpredictable format so we need to stay consistent if we can and hopefully the big players will produce on the day.

I’m very excited for the return of the NBL, I think it will be a great chance for Team Derby to get back on top after winning the first year and falling short in the semis last year, it’s a good chance to get back on track and we’re looking forward to it.

“It can be difficult to change to the NBL scoring but that’s why we like it, it’s something different it’s not what we do day in and day out it gets the crowd involved.

“People are on the edge of their seats and hopefully we can continue to bring that excitement into this year’s Aj Bell NBL.”

It’s been a busy summer for Ouseph who reached the quarter-finals of the men’s singles in his second appearance at an Olympic Games.

The 30-year-old didn’t quite match the heights of men’s doubles pair Chris Langbridge and Marcus Ellis, who won bronze, but was pleased nonetheless with his Rio performance.

Now he is hoping to transfer that that positive experience into the new AJ Bell NBL season for Team Derby.

“Looking back at Rio I was really pleased to get to the quarter-finals, that was my goal going into it - to exceed my seeding,” he added.

“Comparing Rio to London it was very different because of how I performed. I was disappointed with how I performed in London but I still enjoyed it.

“I enjoyed Rio more after doing better, I’ll take those experiences with me and hopefully use them positively in the future.”

The 2016/17 season of the AJ Bell National Badminton League starts on Monday 17 October. For fixtures, tickets and team news, visit: www.nationalbadmintonleague or follow @NBL_official on Twitter