Top tennis players coming to S'pore for inaugural event

Singapore

HE dazzled the crowds at the Singapore Indoor Stadium back in 1997 and 1998 by winning the doubles event at the Heineken Open tennis tournament.

Next Tuesday, Mahesh Bhupathi will make his return to Kallang as the man behind the new Coca-Cola International Premier Tennis League (IPTL) event, a three-day showcase featuring some of the world's top players both past and present.

The 40-year-old - the first Indian in history to win a Grand Slam tournament - is the founder and managing director of the IPTL, an inaugural competition covering four cities in Asia. It starts in Manila this Friday before coming to Singapore (Dec 2-4) and then Mumbai (Dec 6-8) before wrapping up in Dubai (Dec 11-13).

When it came to picking the four host cities, Singapore made the cut for many reasons, said Mr Bhupathi in a recent interview with The Business Times.

"This country has been a favourite of mine since I was a kid. It's a high-profile city and there is plenty of sport and entertainment going on. It's a mature market and it definitely was on our priority list," he said.

Each city will have its own "home" franchise team. The fans at the Singapore Indoor Stadium will cheer on the DBS Singapore Slammers, featuring the likes of eight-time Grand Slam winner Andre Agassi, Lleyton Hewitt and Patrick Rafter.

They will play in a round-robin format against three other teams - the Manila Mavericks, the Micromax Indian Aces and the UAE Royals. Among the top players in those teams are Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Caroline Wozniacki and this year's US Open champion Marin Cilic.

In addition to the prize purse of US$1 million (S$1.3 million), the winning team will take home a special trophy - a life-size tennis racquet that sits on a pure silver base decorated with genuine diamonds.

The IPTL has an innovative "code-breaking" format that will allow fans to catch as many as 24 different players in action in a single day.

The faster-paced format will feature time-outs, power points, shoot-outs, Hawk-eye technology, and a running shot clock. A DJ will spin music "live" and spectators are even encouraged to depart from traditional tennis etiquette to cheer their favourite teams on even when the point is still being played.

"I think fans will see something fast and entertaining. And in one single session of three hours, they will get to watch the men, women and legends playing. Overall, we're hoping that fans will be excited about the unique concept," said Mr Bhupathi.

The IPTL comes hot on the heels of the inaugural BNP Paribas WTA Finals, which saw the world's top eight female tennis players in town. The current world No 1 Serena Williams, who is the headline star of the DBS Singapore Slammers, won that US$6.5 million tournament in October.

Mr Bhupathi is confident that he has found a winning formula with the timing of the IPTL - taking place after the end of the professional men's and women's tour season - and the fact that some of the most recognisable faces in the sport are on board.

He wants to eventually expand the event to as many as eight teams by 2020. He added that he was already in discussions with at least two more countries to join the IPTL calendar in the future, with talks with one of them already at an advanced stage.

Even though he is not as active on the professional tour these days, tennis fans could well get the chance to watch Mr Bhupathi grace the courts once again when the next IPTL rolls around in 2015.

"All four teams (this year) have tried to get me to be part of their roster, but maybe next year. I'm still exploring the opportunities," he said.