What’s On previews the International Premier Tennis League (IPTL) in Dubai, featuring Roger Federer, Andy Murray, Maria Sharapova, Novak Djokovic and more.


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A brand new ‘tennis Champions League’ will come to the UAE in December featuring some of the best current and past players, including world number one Novak Djokovic.

The International Premier Tennis League (IPTL) pits four teams representing different countries against one another in a round-robin series.

Legends such as Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras will be take part alongside current stars like Roger Federer, Andy Murray, Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova and Djokovic. In total, there are 21 Grand Slam winners and 14 world number ones playing over 12 days in four countries.

Split into franchises relative to the locations of the tournament, it kicks off in the Philippines on November 28 before moving on to Singapore, India and, finally, the UAE.

In Dubai, proceedings start on December 11 with the Micromax Indian Aces (Federer, Sampras, Gael Monfils, Ana Ivanovic, Sania Mirza, Rohan Bopanna, Fabrice Santoro) pitted against the Singapore Slammers (Williams, Agassi, Tomas Berdych, Lleyton Hewitt, Nick Kyrgios, Daniela Hantuchova, Bruno Soares, Pat Rafter).

That’s followed by the UAE Royals (Djokovic, Caroline Wozniacki, Malek Jaziri, Nenad Zimonjic, Goran Ivanisevic, Eugenie Bouchard, Marin Cilic) versus the Manila Mavericks (Murray, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Kirsten Flipkens, Daniel Nestor, Carlos Moya, Sharapova, Treat Huey).

So, how does it work? Each ‘fixture’ comprises five single-set matches – men’s singles, women’s singles, men’s doubles, mixed doubles and past champion singles – with points awarded for individual games won and bonuses for final scores.

To add to the excitement, a game clock has been introduced, which ensures just 20 seconds between each point, and only three minutes between sets.

The IPTL has also introduced 60-second time outs, and power point which allow the receiving player to earn double from one shot. A grand prize of $1,000,000 is up for grabs at the end.

You can learn more about the format by clicking here, or here from the stars representing the UAE below.

The Dubai matches will take place at Hamdan Sports Complex and tickets are available from ticketmaster.ae and platinumlist.ae