By Nick Butler

Past and present Grand Slam champions Andy Murray and Carlos Moya pose together following a victory of the ITPL opener in Manila ©Getty ImagesTennis's popularity in Asia and the Middle East will be boosted by the International Premier Tennis League (IPTL) that started in Manila this weekend, a report has claimed.


A survey, carried out by sports marketing research company Repucom, found 11 per cent of adults in India were interested in the sport, as well as 40 per cent of the population of Singapore, 17.4 per cent in the Philippines and 20 per cent in the United Arab Emirates.

But it is thought the impact from the event, which features stops in all four countries over the next two weeks and will include some of the world's best known stars, will cause interest to rise further.

"The IPTL will be a big boost for tennis in Asia," said Repucom's Senior vice-president, South Asia and Director, India, Joseph Eapen.

"People are more aware of the sport and Asia and the Middle East are investing a lot of money in developing world-class sports stadiums and grounds.

"Globosport, an existing Repucom client and organisers of the event, have done a tremendous job in securing the biggest stars in tennis and promoting the much anticipated event.

"In these regions that are highly passionate about sports, the IPTL will inspire people to watch and even play tennis."

Serena Williams has been one of the most recognisable stars competing in the event ©Getty ImagesSerena Williams has been one of the most recognisable stars competing in the event
©Getty Images





The IPTL began in the Filipino capital on Friday (November 28), after the first leg was moved from the initial location of Bangkok due to political instability earlier this year.

A second leg will begin in Singapore on Tuesday (December 2), before a third in Delhi starting on Saturday (December 6) and a final one in Dubai from December 11 to 13.

Among the star names present are Grand Slam winners Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams, Caroline Wozniacki and Marin Čilić, along with legends of the sport such as Carlos Moya, Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi.

The players are split into four teams with these teams set to compete against each other in one-set men's singles, women's singles, men's doubles, mixed doubles and legends singles encounters, with the team that earns the most games winning the match tie.

The format, which builds upon the success of events in other sports including cricket's Indian Premier League, is also utilising several innovative scoring features.

Although a normal sets format is being used, the team that wins the most games, accumulated from all five sets, wins the match, while each set is played first to six games with a five-minute shoot-out at 5-5.

Players have a 20-second shot clock between points, with team coaches able to call a 60-second time-out once during each set, while the receiving player can call a Power Point once every set, indicating that the next point counts double.

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