Nadal and Serena inspire wins for Aces and Mavericks in IPTL

The Indian Aces and the Philippine Mavericks continued their impressive run in this year's International Premier Tennis League (IPTL) with victories in the second stage of the tournament in Manila.

Rafael Nadal, in his first IPTL showing, secured a clean sweep for the team with a 6-5 victory over UAE Royal's Tomas Berdych on Monday (December 7).

Earlier in the day, a win for Samantha Stosur, and a men's doubles victory for Nadal and Ivan Dodig over Daniel Nestor and Berdych, had already put the Aces in an unassailable position when Nadal took to the court for the singles clash with the backing of the crowd in Manila.

However, the Czech fought had to push Nadal all the way but eventually the Spaniard claimed victory to secure an overall victory of 30-18.

The Aces victory moves them to top of the IPTL table with three wins from three.

After his victory, Nadal said the IPTL format was a lot of fun.

"I enjoyed it. I have a great team around, funny people. And I think we played quite well, it was a different way to play tennis," said the world number five.

Closely behind the Aces in the overall table are the Philippine Mavericks, who were cheered on by a raucous home crowd on Monday.

Serena Williams and Milos Raonic combined to win the mixed doubles 6-4 over Japan Warriors' Pierre-Huges Herbert and Mirjan Lucic-Baroni, after the Warriors had put the home team under pressure with a 6-3 victory for Philipp Kohlschreiber over Richard Gasquet in the men's singles.

However, after Williams' doubles victory she then dispatched Lucic-Baroni 6-3 in the women's singles on the way to a 25-21 overall victory for the Mavericks.

The Mavericks are now second in the overall table with three wins from four matches.

The top two meet on Wednesday (December 8) in the final round of matches in the Manila stage of the competition.

The event then moves onto New Delhi on December 10.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Indian Aces win again in Federer's IPTL debut

Swiss superstar Roger Federer was given a tremendous welcome by a capacity crowd at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in New Delhi when he made his debut for the Indian Aces in the International Premier Tennis League (IPTL) Sunday.

"It's my first time in India playing tennis, so it's a big deal for me," said world No. 2 Federer. "I thought it's a great innovation, people seem happy to see me. I was excited when I saw the lights flashing while introducing me."

"It was a goose-bump atmosphere," he added. "It was definitely a very cool moment for me in my career."

Federer was not the only tennis superstar to make his IPTL debut; 14-time Grand Slam winner Pete Sampras also suited up for the Aces for the first time but lost in the first set to Patrick Rafter of the Singapore Slammers.

After losing the first set, however, the Aces never looked back as they dominated the Slammers the rest of the way.

The electrifying second set saw Federer team up with Sania Mirza in the mixed doubles as they turned back Singapore's Nick Kyrgios and Daniela Hantuchova, 6-0, to delight the crowd.

Federer returned to the court in the men's doubles, where he paired up with Rohan Bopanna. The duo played an adrenaline-pumping set that saw them defeat the all-Australian pair of Kyrgios and Lleyton Hewitt, 6-1.

Tomas Berdych then tested Federer in the men's singles set, as fans witnessed a display worthy of two top ten players. Berdych put up a brave show of talent, winning four sets, but could not keep up with Federer's brilliance in the end.

"I'm happy to have done well for my team today," Federer said after the match. "It's been a while since I played mixed doubles. In the past, I've played with Martina Navratilova, Martina Hingis, and my wife. Playing with Sania today was fun."

The final set saw Ana Ivanovic and Daniela Hantuchova engage in a thrilling encounter that went to a 5-5 tie, but it was Ivanovic who won the five-minute shootout to cap a sterling night for the Indian Aces.

The Aces won the match 26-16 and remain on top of the league table with 28 overall points.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Indian Aces top table after IPTL Manila leg

MANILA, Philippines -- The Indian Aces proved to be the best team so far in the inaugural International Premier Tennis League (IPTL) as they defeated the UAE Royals, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-3, and 6-4 in the final day of the Manila leg Sunday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.

Frenchman Gael Monfils was the star of the night for the Aces, as he lifted them to victory in the men's doubles and in the men's singles, while Rohan Bopanna and Sania Mirza continued their winning run in the mixed doubles.

The Aces' 28-20 aggregate victory over the Royals means that they are now at the top of the table at the end of the opening leg of the IPTL.

"I love this format, and I love this event," said Monfils, who by the second day of the IPTL had become the darling of the crowd. "I think we have fun our there, and we are good friends (among the team)."

"It was a good pick for our team... We have fun out there, but still, we are serious on the court, so for me, it's great," he added.

Both the Royals and the Aces were unbeaten entering Sunday's match, having won their Friday and Saturday matches.

The Royals got off to a winning start after Kristina Mladenovic stunned world No. 5 and crowd favorite Ana Ivanovic in the women's singles set, 6-4.

The pair of Bopanna and Mirza put the Aces on the win column with a great performance in the mixed doubles, beating Mladenovic and Nenad Zimonjic. Bopanna and Mirza again showed off the chemistry that allowed them to beat the superstar pair of Andy Murray and Maria Sharapova Saturday night.

Bopanna then teamed up with Monfils in the men's singles, and they combined to see off Zimonjic and Cilic in an entertaining set that saw the Frenchman thrill the crowd with his athletic moves.

Monfils entertained the crowd in the break between sets as well, dancing to the tune of "Teach Me How to Dougie" and playing to the audience, who eagerly cheered and applauded his every move.

Against Cilic in the men's singles, Monfils showed that he was as great a tennis player as he was a dancer, taking a 2-1 advantage against the U.S. Open champion who seemed to struggle with his return.

Ahead of the fourth game, the Royals substituted Tunisian world No. 80 Malek Jaziri in place of Cilic, and the move seemed to briefly throw off Monfils as Jaziri tied the set at 2-2.

"I was a bit surprised, and at the end, I hope that Marin is good," said Monfils. "You know, I know Malik, I've played against him (before), and I know he is tough."

"Maybe not everybody knows that he is this good, but he's very strong," he added.

Monfils quickly regained his composure, however, winning the next two games in quick fashion. Jaziri salvaged a game to make it 3-4, but Monfils showed remarkable shot-making in the eight game, winning a sensational rally through a perfectly placed lob. His momentum carried into the ninth game, where he blanked Jaziri to seal the win.

"I was in great shape at the end of the game," said Monfils.

The final set of the match pitted Fabrice Santoro against another crowd favorite, Goran Ivanisevic, in the legends set. Ivanisevic, as he had done all throughout the Manila leg, played to the audience all throughout, but Santoro broke his serve in the final game to cap the win for the Aces.

The Indian Aces now have 12 points to top the table at the end of the Manila leg, while the Royals settled for 10 points after losing their last match.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Indian Aces rout Singapore Slammers in IPTL clash

MANILA, Philippines -- The Indian Aces won four out of five sets against the Singapore Slammers Friday evening at the SM Mall of Asia Arena to win the first ever International Premier Tennis League (IPTL) match.

Ana Ivanovic and Gael Monfils of the Aces drew the loudest cheers from the MOA Arena crowd as they routed their overmatched opponents in the women's and men's singles, respectively.

But it was the pair of Rohan Bopanna and Sania Mirza who got the party started for the Aces, as they defeated the pair of Bruno Soares and Daniela Hantuchova, 6-4, in the mixed doubles.

Indian Aces playing coach Fabrice Santoro and Singapore's Patrick Rafter put on a show in a match-up of past champions, as they battled to a 5-5 draw that triggered the first-ever five minute shootout in IPTL history.

It was Santoro who won the shootout, 8-4, giving the Aces a 2-0 set lead and a 12-9 advantage in games won.

The Slammers pulled one back in the men's doubles, as the pair of Tomas Berdych and Nicholas Kyrgios beat Monfils and Bopanna, 2-0.

The Aces dominated the singles matches, however, as the charismatic Ivanovic thoroughly outclassed Hantuchova, 6-0, to the delight of the crowd, and Monfils booked an entertaining 6-1 victory over Lleyton Hewitt.

"It's a great team, I couldn't ask for a better team," Ivanovic said in a brief post-match press conference. "I'm really happy to spend time with all of them. The team spirit was great, we were laughing a lot and trying to make jokes, and I think Fabrice is a great captain."

Monfils became the first victim of the much discussed "shot clock," when, leading 3-1, he failed to serve by the time the clock expired and Hewitt was awarded a point.

The Frenchman made a fuss at the umpire, even going back to his own bench, but eventually returned to serve and won the next three games handily.

"I think everyone found the 20-second rule quite interesting," said Ivanovic. "It was very fast, especially with the ball sometimes not being in place, and it was a bit faster and a bit more dynamic."

Another new feature, the "Happiness Power Point," also repeatedly came into play. Mirza and Bopanna used the power point in the first set to win a game while up 30-15, and Rafter, Ivanovic, and Monfils also won power points in their respective sets.

The Aces had a 25-16 lead in terms of games won.

As promised by the organizers ahead of the competition, the sets were much faster than fans and even the players had gotten used to, thanks to the shot clock that timed the serves and the no-ad rule.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com