THE Philippine Mavericks beefed up with the acquisition of world No. 1 Serena Williams for its campaign in the second season of the prestigious International Premiere Tennis League (IPTL) this December.
Team Manager Jean Henri Lhuilier, a co-owner of the Philippine squad, said the arrival of Williams gives the squad depth and versatility.
“We are deeper than last year,” said Lhuilier during the press launch of the event on Thursday at the Mall of Asia Arena. “Serena gives us more depth because she’s very strong in singles and doubles.”
With Lhuilier on the Philippine Mavericks management team are SM Prime Holdings Head Hans Sy, SM Lifestyle Entertainment Inc.’s Edgar Tejerero, Kevin Belmonte and Haresh Hiranand.
The Mavericks, then known as Manila Mavericks, finished third with 35 points (six wins, six losses) behind champion Micromax Indian Aces (39 pts, 8-4) and the United Arab Emirates Royals (37 pts, 7-5) in the 2014 inaugurals.
The Singapore Slammers were last with 24 points, winning three of the 12 matches.
Williams suited up for the Singapore squad and played at the MOA Arena leg during the last day of the three-day competition.
This season, IPTL added a new franchise, the Japan Warriors, that will be bannered by Japan’s No. 1 Kei Nishikori and Maria Sharapova, who suited up for the Philippine Mavericks last season.
Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga is returning for the Philippine squad, which will host the second leg from December 6 to 8 again at the MOA Arena.
The other members of the Philippine Mavericks are local hero Treat Huey, Mark Philippousis, Richard Gasquet, Jarmila Gajdosova, Borna Coric and Sabine Lisicki.
IPTL Vice President of Operations Abhishek Ponia expects another exciting and record-breaking Manila leg this year.
“We’re overwhelmed with the reception of the fans last year,” said Ponia, adding that more than 30,000 fans watched the action at the MOA Arena.
Ponia added that former men’s No. 1 Rafael Nadal has confirmed his appearance in the Manila leg to banner the defending champion Indian Aces.
Gael Monfils, Agnieszka Radwanska, Fabrice Santoro, Ivan Dodig, Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna also composed the Indian Aces.
Aside from Sharapova and Nishikori, another Japanese player, Kurumi Nara, is suiting up for the new franchise that also includes Vasek Pospisil, Leander Paes, Daniela Hantuchova, Lucas Pouille and Marat Safin.
Roger Federer, Goran Ivanisevic, Ana Ivanovic, Marin Cilic, Daniel Nestor, Kristina Mladenovic and Tomas Berdych comprised the UAE Royals.
Men’s No. 1 Novak Djokovic, Nick Kyrgios, Marcelo Melo, Belinda Bencic, Thanasi Kokkinakis, Karolina Pliskova and Carlos Moya headlined the Singapore Slammers.
Japan will host the first leg of the IPTL to be followed by Manila, New Delhi, Dubai and Singapore. The second season will run from December 2 to 20.
Tickets for the Manila leg will be available on July 15.
Image credits: Roy Domingo