New Delhi: After Manila and Singapore, the star-studded International Premier Tennis League bandwagon is all set to hit Indian soil.Given that the annual Chennai Open is the only ATP Tour event allotted to the country, the glitzy event provides the fans an opportunity to witness top stars in action.The $1,000,000-prize money event thus offers a golden opportunity to Indian tennis afficionados to see a galaxy of superstars at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium here over the weekend.
The India leg is likely to generate maximum interest with the participation of 17-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer, world no. 1 Novak Djokovic and the legendary Pete Sampras, besides many others.“I am really looking forward to making my first trip to New Delhi and playing for the Indian Aces. My team mates tell me that there are a lot of tennis fans and my supporters in the region, so I hope you can come out and support me in December,” said Federer, who will represent the Indian Aces.
Missing from action though would be Maria Sharapova (Manila Mavericks) and Serena Williams (Singapore Slammers) both of whom will skip the India leg. Ana Invanovic, Tomas Berdych, Marin Cilic and Caroline Wozniacki are the others, apart from home girl Sania Mirza, who will the grace the event. Table toppers Indian Aces (20 points) will open their challenge against Mavericks on Saturday, while Slammers and UAE Royals will clash in the opening game.
The Aces, who were unbeaten in the Manila leg, were surprised by the bottom-placed Slammers and then went down to the Mavericks in Singapore. They will now look to return to winning ways.Reserve player Fabrice Santoro filled in for Sampras in the legends’ game while Gael Monfils and Ana Ivanovic were near flawless in their singles’ matches.
