New Delhi: Multiple Grand Slam champion and former world No. 1 Rafael Nadal will make his debut in season two of the International Premier Tennis League (IPTL), scheduled from December 2 to 20, as the marquee player of defending champions Indian Aces.
This time the tournament will have five teams with the inclusion of Japan Warriors, who will join the Aces, the UAE Royals, Philippine Mavericks and Singapore Slammers. The event will start in Japan and conclude in Singapore.
Nadal will play alongside Frenchmen Gael Monfils and Fabrice Santoro, Pole Agnieszka Radwanska, Croat Ivan Dodig and two of India’s highly successful doubles stars — women’s world No. 1 Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna.
A major highlight this season will be the much anticipated encounter between long-standing rivals Nadal and Roger Federer, who was the marquee player for the Aces last year but will turn out for the Dubai-based Royals this time around.
Indian fans will get to be a part of the match-up when the Aces face the Royals here on December 12.
“Season one brought some of the world’s biggest tennis stars to cities in Asia for the very first time in an exciting new format. The reception shown by fans was a revelation. This year the event will be bigger,” IPTL founder Mahesh Bhupathi said.
“We have added a big market in Japan and, with both Nadal and [Kei] Nishikori playing, fans will be in for a thrilling three weeks. Indian sports lovers have a lot to look forward to in Delhi from December 10 to 12.”
