After a perfect start to their International Premier Tennis League 2016 campaign, the Indian Aces will target another win when they play the Singapore Slammers. The Indian Aces began their IPTL season with a comfortable victory over the hosts Japan Warriors in Saitama on Friday.
The Indian Aces have always been a tough team to beat since the inception of this tournament, and while they might have been low on star power on Friday, they still found ways to dominate their opponents.
Kirsten Flipkens started the match off with a convincing 6-2 win over Kurumi Nara. The second set was a lot closer, but Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna brought all their experience into play to beat Jelena Jankovic and Jean-Julien Rojer 6-5. That gave the Indian Aces a 12-7 overall lead, and they would only strengthen their position.
Mark Philippoussis was too strong for Marat Safin in the legends singles, while Ivan Dodig and Feliciano Lopez eased past Rojer and Fernando Verdasco in the men's doubles.
Lopez just about manged to get the better of Verdasco 6-5 in the concluding men's singles to give the Indian Aces a 30-17 victory.
"I am really happy with the way I played," Philippoussis said. "It was very important to get the points right at the beginning because Marat is a very strong player. I was very pleased with the team outcome and how everybody played."
Next up are the Singapore Slammers, who went down to the UAE Royals 29-19.
The second match of the day will be between the Japan Warriors and the UAE Royals. The Royals were impressive in their opening victory over Singapore, so the Japan Warriors will have a difficult task ahead of them.
"It has been a good start," Royals legends player Goran Ivanisevic said. "I always play good in Japan since a long time ago. We played last year in Kobe and now Tokyo, it's a perfect start. I am very happy to be back."
Where to Watch Live
Indian Aces vs Singapore Slammer sis set to begin at 2pm local time (10.30am IST, 5am GMT). The second match is scheduled for a 5.30pm local time (2pm IST, 8.30am GMT) start.
India: TV: Star Sports Select HD2. Live Streaming: Hotstar.
Singapore: TV: Singtel.
South East Asia: TV: Fox Sports.
UK: TV: Sky Sports 3. Live Streaming: Watch Sky Sports.
UAE: TV: Abu Dhabi Sports.
USA: TV: Tennis Channel. Live Streaming: Tennis Channel online.
International: Live Streaming: IPTL TV.
