Fun, entertainment usher in IPTL feast

MARIA Sharapova plays in the second duel.

MATCHES TODAY (Mall of Asia Arena)
4 p.m.—UAE Royals vs. Singapore Slammers
Cilic vs. Hewitt (M singles)
Mladenovic vs. Hantuchova (W singles)
Cilic-Zimonjic vs. Berdych-Soares (M doubles)
Mladenovic-Zimonjic vs. Hantuchova-Soares (Mixed doubles)
Ivanisevic vs. Rafter (Past champions singles)
7:30 p.m.—Manila Mavericks vs. Indian Aces
Murray vs. Monfils (M singles)
Sharapova vs. Ivanovic (W singles)
Huey-Tsonga vs. Monfils-Bopanna (M doubles)
Flipkens-Nestor vs. Sania-Bopanna (Mixed doubles)
Moya vs. Santoro (Past champions singles)

SO THIS is how a sport as strait-laced as tennis looks like if it kicks its feet up and lets its hair down.

A-list players hammer groundstrokes and then come up with sideline antics that bring the house down. Games sped up by loose and unique rules. And even blonde dancers at the sidelines.

This was how the breakthrough International Premier Tennis League kicked off its Manila leg in a bid to amp up the entertainment factor like never before.

The result, going by the loud cheers and the roar of laughter at Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay, was a resounding success thus far. Big names in local politics, business and show biz showed up, occupying seats that went for as much as P58,000 for a three-day pass.

“The crowd was amazing tonight, I really enjoyed it,” said Grand Slam champ Ana Ivanovic, who blasted Daniela Hantuchova in women’s singles, 6-0. “The atmosphere is nice and I’m looking forward to more of it through the weekend.”

Ivanovic, playing for the Indian Aces, chipped in the first six points in her team’s 26-16 result against the Singapore Slammers in the three-day showdown.

The opening schedule consisted of five sets of men’s singles, women’s singles, men’s doubles, mixed doubles and legends’ doubles. Scores of each set were added for the team’s final score.

With the emphasis on entertainment, the players showed off their talent side by side with their lighter side.

BIG result for Ana Ivanovic in singles.

Teammates chest-bumped—the women did side bumps—after winning sets.

Indian Aces captain Gael Monfils, who has a penchant for entertaining the crowd, was an instant hit with the audience by openly challenging umpire calls.

It was as if tennis just acquired its own version of the Harlem Globetrotters—if the Globetrotters fielded LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony and Chris Paul.

The four teams battle in a single round-robin throughout the weekend, and then again in the next three legs in Singapore, Dubai and New Delhi with the team with the most points earning $1 million.

Coaches can call timeouts in between rallies—by throwing a towel onto the court. There are things like “power points,” which doubles the score if the player wins the point.

The talent level, however, was all too familiar. In one sequence, the Slammers’ feisty youngster Nick Kyrgios returned a shot from the baseline, firing between his legs. The audience roared in cheers only to see Monfils fire back in the same fashion.

Against a younger Patrick Rafter of the Slammers, the 41-year-old two-time Grand Slam doubles champion Fabrice Santoro chased down shots to force a 5-5 tie and paved the way for a five-minute shootout—another new rule.

The shootout uses a “shot clock” and the player with the higher score at the buzzer takes the set.

The rule was certainly “open” to fun interpretations. With a 7-4 lead, Santoro made it look like he was catching his breath to run out the clock in the process.

Monfils rode the ploy, instructing Santoro to use the 20-second service clock to the hilt. He also kept bringing water for Santoro in between points.