International Premier Tennis League tickets on sale Sept. 1, event now in MOA Arena
The Passionate Fan – Sat, Aug 30, 2014 1:45 PM PHT
By Bob Guerrero
At last some information on ticket prices and availability of the country’s biggest-ever tennis event can be announced.
Tennis fans can watch the International Premier Tennis League’s
inaugural leg in Manila on November 28 to 30 for as low as P2500 for a
three-day pass in the General Admission section. The most expensive
three-day pass will be P49,000 for the VIP area, inclusive of a
red-carpet entry. These are prices for the early-bird phase of ticket
sales which will run until September 15. Tickets will be available in www.smtickets.com.
The prices of the other packages in between Gen Ad and VIP were not
divulged by IPTL in their press release. It appears that tickets for
individual match days will not yet be sold.
Each 3-day pass entitles the holder to watch two five-set matches
that will begin at 4 pm and 7:30 pm. All five sets will be played in
each match, since in the IPTL’s format, it’s the number of games, not
sets, won, that determines the winner.
The venue for the competition has also been shifted to the Mall of Asia Arena.
“When the Mall of Asia, one of the finest entertainment venues in the
world, opened up the dates required to host the IPTL, we had to
reconsider our previous venue options and quickly agreed that MOA is the
right fit to host the event,” explained IPTL COO Eric Gottschalk.
Previously it was announced that the IPTL’s Manila leg would take place
in the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
“SM is the biggest conglomerate in the Philippines and having them as
a partner adds a lot of value to our property and validates the
potential of our league,” said IPTL founder Mahesh Bhupathi, a multiple
tennis grand slam champion in doubles, mostly with countryman Leander
Paes.
Andy Murray of Scotland and Maria Sharapova will banner the home
side, the Manila Mavericks. Also filling up the roster of the Mavericks
will be Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Spaniard Carlos Moya, Canadian
Daniel Nestor, and Filipino Treat Huey.
Other superstars who will see action are Serena Williams, Ana
Ivanovic, Tomas Berdych, Eugenie Bouchard, Gael Monfils, Daniela
Hantuchova, and Richard Gasquet. They will play for the other three
teams in this year’s competition, namely the Singapore Slammers, the UAE
Royals, and the Indian Aces.
The legends of yesteryear will also have their moment in the
spotlight. Each match will have a Past Champions set, where Goran
Ivanisevic, Lleyton Hewitt, Patrick Rafter and Moya will relive their
halcyon days.
The IPTL will have five sets in each match; a men’s singles, women’s
singles, men’s doubles, mixed doubles, and former champion’s singles.
Players can call time outs, call “power points” that count double, and
there will be tiebreakers at 5-5 instead of 6-6. There will also be
no-add scoring, so long deuces will be prevented.
To understand the format of the event better, watch this video here that explains it in detail.
The Tour visits Singapore, Dubai, and New Delhi after the Philippine
stop, with the winning team receiving US$1 million in prize money.
Maria Sharapova also released a video on youtube greeting her Filipino fans.
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