This past November, the International Premier Tennis League (IPTL) kicked off with competition between the:
• Micromax Indian Aces
• Musafir.com UAE Royals
• Manila Mavericks
• DBS Singapore Slammers
Match play includes:
1. Five sets
a. Men’s Singles
b. Women’s Singles
c. Mixed Doubles
d. Men’s Doubles
e. Men’s Legends’ Singles
2. Each set is played first to six games with a five minute shoot-out at five-all.
3. No-ad scoring applies for each game and each game won counts as one point for the team’s total.
The order of play is to be decided by the home team, and the team lineup is given to the umpire 45 minutes before the match starts. There are other slight differences in the rules that make the matches fun for all parties.
Critics of the league claim that it is not real tennis, that it is a commercial venture to benefit the league owner, and that it will detract from the WTA and ATP circuits. The critics are entitled to their opinions; however, it should be noted that the first season of the league was well received by fans and players. That is great for the sport!
Colorado tennis fans should note that Scott Davidoff, former coach for the CU men’s tennis team, is the Executive Director for the IPTL. Hats off to Scott and his group for demonstrating to people around the world how much fun it is to play and watch tennis.
For more details on the IPTL click here or check out the embedded You Tube video below.
<iframe width=”560″ height=”315″ src=”//www.youtube.com/embed/oi2Is7pMlx4″ frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen>