Rafael Nadal is ready to entertain fans in Delhi as the Indian Aces begin their India leg of the IPTL with a big match against the Philippine Mavericks.
Nadal is the headline act for the Indian Aces this season, and having put in stirring performances in a couple of matches of the Philippine leg, it is over the Delhi now.
"I am really looking forward to playing in India," Nadal, who has made his presence felt in the Chennai Open a fair few times in the past, told IPTL's official website. "I have a part of my foundation there, have a centre in Anantapur.
"Also I've played there in Chennai a few times, I enjoy a lot of fan support in India, so I'm really looking forward to playing there. This visit is also very special to me because few of the children from my foundation will be coming to Delhi to visit the city, to see me play, so I am very happy about that but I'm also very sad to know about the situation in Chennai because of the rains and the floods.
"It's very hard to see so many people suffering, and I hope the situation becomes better soon."
The Indian Aces went down 25-24 in a riveting contest against the Philippine Mavericks on Tuesday, with Milos Raonic just getting the better of Nadal in the deciding match. The Aces, therefore, will be determined to gain some revenge when the two teams meet on Thursday at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium.
"I loved the energy out there," Nadal said after the match in Philippines. "I had my chances, it could have gone either way, but it was a great match. It was a great afternoon.
"Great tennis. I had the final point for the Aces but I came back two breaks down during the set. And he played great and I missed him by two forehands at the end.
"But it was great fantastic energy out there and I enjoyed the crowd. I enjoyed playing the doubles too, Ivan [Dodig] is a fantastic doubles player and I play singles well, so it was a good combination."
Teams: Indian Aces: Samantha Stosur, Sania Mirza, Rafael Nadal, Ivan Dodig, Gael Monfils, Rohan Bopanna, Fabrice Santoro.
Philippine Mavericks: Jarmila Gajdosova, Serena Williams, Milos Raonic, Eduard Roger-Vasselin, Richard Gasquet, Treat Huey, Mark Philippoussis.
Where to Watch Live
Indian Aces vs Philippine Mavericks is set to begin at 7.30 pm IST (2 pm GMT, 9 am ET). Live coverage of the match in India will be on Star Sports 4, while all the action can also be watched via live streaming online on Starsports.com and Hotstar.
Sports5 will broadcast Indian Aces vs Philippine Mavericks live in the Philippines, while viewers in Singapore can watch the action on the SingTel network. Audience from SouthEast Asia can watch the action live on Fox Sports Asia.
Audience in the UK can catch Day 1 of the India leg of the IPTL live on Sky Sports, with the live stream option on Sky Go. Viewers in the US will be able to watch the IPTL live on the Tennis Channel, while the action can also be live streamed on Tennis Channel online.
