Mavericks to unwrap balanced cast in IPTL

The Philippine Mavericks are out to make a strong push for the championship in the second season of the International Premier Tennis League (IPTL) starting Dec. 2 in Japan and with world No. 1 Serena Williams now leading the charge, it’s possible they could go all the way after a third place finish last year.

France’s Jo Wilfried Tsonga, Fil-Am doubles specialist Treat Huey and Australian legend Mark Philippoussis will be back with the Mavericks. Gone are Andy Murray, Maria Sharapova, Carlos Moya, Daniel Nestor, Kristen Flipkens and substitute Philip Kohlscheiber who played for the Manila, now Philippine, Mavericks last season. Murray, Sharapova and Moya saw action only in the Manila leg. Philippoussis and Kohlscheiber were brought in as IPTL-designated substitutes to replace injured players during the inaugural season.

Philippine Davis Cup coach Roland Kraut said yesterday the Mavericks cast is now more balanced and Williams’ inclusion will make a big difference. Since Murray, Sharapova and Moya played only in Manila, the Mavericks were without icons in Singapore, India and the United Arab Emirates last year. Overall, the Mavericks posted a 6-6 win-loss record and were 4-0 over Singapore and 1-3 against UAE and India.

“I spoke with Treat about his IPTL experience and he told me the Manila leg was the best of all,” said Kraut. “Our fans were the most enthusiastic and cheered the loudest. We came out not only for the Mavericks but even for the other teams. Dubai had the biggest arena but there were no crowds. India had big crowds but only for the India matches. Our venue, the Mall of Asia Arena, was also the best and most impressive stadium. I think the IPTL created a major impact in terms of reintroducing tennis as an exciting sport. I’ve heard that a lot more kids are now playing. Definitely, the interest for tennis got a big kick. And this season will be even more exciting for our fans because the Mavericks will be title contenders.”

Kraut said the IPTL has ruled that only legends will coach a team so Philippoussis takes over from Huey with the Mavericks. Philippoussis, 38, is an Australian of Greek and Italian descent. He earned $7 Million in his tennis career that was laced with 11 titles. The others in the Mavericks lineup are Williams, Tsonga, Huey, France’s Richard Gasquet, Slovakia’s Jarmila Gajdosova, Germany’s Sabine Lisicki and Croatia’s Borna Coric.

Williams, 33, is a title away from sweeping the four Grand Slam events this year and will make history with a victory at the US Open. She has so far earned $73 Million as the most dominant player in the women’s circuit. Tsonga, 30, was a 2012 Olympic quarterfinalist now ranked world No. 12 with 11 career championships and earnings of $14.7 Million. Huey, 29, has reached the quarterfinals in doubles at the Australian and US Opens and is a mainstay of the Philippine Davis Cup team. Gasquet, 29, is ranked world No. 13 with 12 career titles and earnings of $12.3 Million. Gajdosova, 28, is now based in Australia and ranked world No. 25. Lisicki, 25, is ranked world No. 12. Coric, 18, is a 6-1 rising star now ranked world No. 33.

This season, the IPTL has expanded from four to five teams, welcoming the Japan Warriors who will be headed by Sharapova, 2014 US Open finalist Kei Nishikori, Daniela Hantuchova and Marat Safin. Roger Federer has moved from India to the UAE Royals whose other stalwarts are Ana Ivanovic, Goran Ivanisevic, Marin Cilic and Thomas Berdych. Rafael Nadal will make his IPTL debut with the Indian Aces who are returning with locals Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna. Serbia’s world No. 1 Novak Djokovic will now lead Singapore with Moya, returnee Nick Kyrgios, Belinda Bencic, Marcelo Melo, Karolina Pliskova and Thanasi Kokkinakis. Djokovic played for the Royals last season but like Federer, Murray and Sharapova, saw action only when their teams hosted.

With five teams in the fold, Kraut said a leg will feature a three-day schedule with four squads playing each day. The full schedule will be released by the IPTL next month. Each match will still consist of a set of men’s singles, women’s singles, mixed doubles, men’s doubles and legends singles so that fans are treated to two matches a day with 24 different players. Each set is straight-to-6 with no add scoring. Innovative rules such as the power point (allowed for each set where a point counts for two), shootout and running clock will remain.

IPTL founder Mahesh Bhupathi said the league’s “new code” of tennis is a thrilling departure from the traditional format. It allows for quick finishes and gives fans a chance to witness the world’s best players in action on a single day. The format also provides fans an affiliation with “home” teams. This season, the IPTL will bring together the top two teams in a playoff for the title in Singapore, the final leg, on Dec. 20. The Manila leg is scheduled on Dec. 6-8.

Last season, the Mavericks’ original lineup included Victoria Azarenka but she withdrew because of an injury and was replaced by Sharapova who only played in the Manila leg. The Mavericks beat Singapore in four legs, 27-19, 29-21, 23-17 and 30-15 and defeated India, 25-20 and the UAE, 27-24. The losses were thrice to India, 24-15, 26-25, 28-23 and thrice to the UAE, 29-24, 26-21, 26-25. India won the first title with an 8-4 record. UAE placed second at 7-5 and the Mavericks third at 6-6.