Dubai: Novak Djokovic believes that it will change the image of the sport while Serena Williams calls it nerve-racking. But which every way you look
at it, the inaugural International Premier Tennis League (IPTL) might just be the best, if not craziest thing ever to happen to tennis.
From a revolutionary one-set format to scoring points for games and having 24 of the world’s best men and women’s players in action during a three-hour period, the IPTL hopes to do for tennis what the Indian Premier League (IPL) did for Twenty20 cricket.
Even if that means throwing traditional, time-honoured rule books and regulations, out of the window.
With the likes of Djokovic, Williams, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray giving it a ringing endorsement, India tennis great Mahesh Bhupathi’s brainchild extravaganza is set to explode across four cities — Manila, Singapore, Mubai and Dubai — between November 28 and December 13.
The inaugural event features four teams of six to eight players who will compete in five single-set match to determine the winner. Demonstrating the enduring importance of choosing a “power” name, the four franchisees are called UAE Royals, Indian Aces, Singapore Slammers and Manila Mavericks.
The Dubai-based franchise, which will feature Djokovic, Richard Gasquet, Janko Tipsarevic, Goran Ivanisevic, Caroline Wozniacki, Martina Hingis, Nenad Zimonjic and Malek Jaziri, was officially launched at the Hamdan Sports Complex, venue for the December 11-13 Dubai-leg of the IPTL, on Tuesday.
Explaining the concept of the IPTL after signing a contract with Tennis Emirates Vice-President Abdul Rahman Falaknaz. Bhupathi said: “We are trying to create something unique in the sport of tennis. Tennis is a very individual sport and the players don’t often get to play team competitions other than Davis Cup or Fed Cup, so the fact that were able to get some of the biggest names in tennis agreeable to play in our event makes it one of our main USPs.
“When we wanted to promote the IPTL the obvious growth markets for tennis over the past ten years has definitely been the Middle East, the Far East and Asia. Tennis has blossomed in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Qatar and China in so many different ways, so we felt that this was the right region to hold the event.”
“Having played in the inaugural Dubai Tennis Championships, I know the potential in Dubai and I have seen the event blossom into one of the leading tournaments in the sport today. We’re so excited to have everyone supporting this event, including the Dubai Sports Council [DSC] and Tennis Emirates [TI] SC, and we hope to make it something everyone in the UAE will be looking forward to witnessing every year.”
Falaknaz hopes that the IPTL will help Tennis Emirates realise its dream of producing an Emirati champion and said: “To have the best players in the world competing in this unique team tennis competition will only encourage more players to take up tennis and also help further develop the sport in the UAE.
“We are extremely happy to extend our support to the team owners and the organisers and wish them the best of luck.”
Dr Ahmad Sharif, Secretary General of the DSC said: “Congratulations to the IPTL for conceptualising such a unique sports product and the Dubai Sports Council is proud to be a partner with the organisers to make this a great success for all the sports fans in the UAE.”
