IPTL Gets Underway in Japan
The International Premier Tennis League (IPTL) got underway from Kobe, Japan on Wednesday, with the OBI UAE Royals picking up the season’s first victory with a 26-20 triumph over the Singapore Slammers at the Kobe World Hall in Kobe, Japan.
The IPTL plays in a fast-paced format with five sets being played in five different categories: Women’s Singles, Men’s Singles, Men’s Doubles, Mixed-Doubles and Men’s Legend Singles. The team’s scores are determined by the amount of games won in each respective set.
Serbia’s Ana Ivanovic got things started for the Royals with a 6-3 win over Belinda Bencic of the Slammers, but the Singapore squad rebounded with a 6-2 win from Nick Kyrgios over Thomas Berdych.
But the Royals would reel off the final three matches, started off by Daniel Nestor & Berdych’s 6-5 victory over Marcelo Melo & Dustin Brown. Nestor then partnered with Kristina Mladenovic to defeat Melo & Karolina Pliskova 6-3 in the mixed-doubles match.
With the victory already in hand, Goran Ivanisevic added to it with a 6-3 win over Carlos Moya in the Men’s Legend Singles contest.
“I played the IPTL last year, so I knew what to expect. I trained particularly for it this time since I know it’s going to be tough,” said Ivanisevic, the 2001 Wimbledon champion. “Last year, we played good tennis, and everyone played to win. This year, it’s going to be more competitive. So I made sure that I come prepared for IPTL.”
In the second match on Wednesday, the Micromax Indian Aces edged the Legendari Japan Warriors 25-24. The crucial points came from the third set played, as Fabrice Santoro defeated Marat Safin 6-2 in the Men’s Legend Singles match.
