DAY 8 MATCH 16: MANILA MAVERICKS EDGE UAE ROYALS FOR A THRILLING 27-24 WIN

DAY 8 MATCH 16: MANILA MAVERICKS EDGE UAE ROYALS FOR A THRILLING 27-24 WIN

WORLD NO. 1 NOVAK DJOKOVIC DEBUTS FOR MUSAFIR.COM UAE ROYALS

7 December 2014

New Delhi: Sunday evening provided New Delhi’s citizens and top tennis players the perfect atmosphere to come out and enjoy yet another exhilarating game of tennis at the Coca-Cola International Premier Tennis League Presented by Qatar Airways. In the second match of the day, the Musafir.com UAE Royals, led by World No. 1 Novak Djokovic, clashed with the formidable Manila Mavericks in a critical encounter, which ended in a 27-24 win for the Mavericks.

• Unbeaten Mark Philippoussis met UAE Royal Goran Ivanisevic in a spirited first set. Continuing his winning streak for the Mavericks, Philippoussis built a comfortable lead and won the set 6 – 3

• In the Men’s Singles, World No. 9 Marin Cilic played against talented Frenchman Jo-Wilfred Tsonga. Both players did well for their teams and the set reached an exciting 5 minute shoot-out, which Cilic won in the face of adversity to claim the set 6 – 5 and brought the Royals back into the contest

• In a replacement that thrilled fans, IPTL debutant Djokovic replaced Cilic to partner Nenad Zimonjic in the Men’s Doubles against Tsonga and Daniel Nestor. Making the best of their experience, the Mavericks swiftly got into a lead, slowly but compellingly broken by the Royals to level scores. An inspiring shoot out was wrapped up in style by Tsonga and Nestor

• Flipkens joined Nestor to tighten the Mavericks’ overall lead. Playing against Zimonjic and Mladenovic, the duo put up an impressive display of teamwork and exciting rallies to win 6 – 2

• In the Women’s Singles, World No.8 Caroline Wozniacki met Flipkens in a closely contested set that witnessedseveral exciting rallies and fine moves. Playing a cool yet powerful game,Wozniacki gradually brought the Royals back into the match but went down to a smart and calculated Flipkens during overtime.

What the Players said:

Caroline Wozniacki

“I think I’m on the good side here! I’ve had three or four deuces and was fun yesterday. Today’s match against Kirsten was not an easy one but I’m happy with the way I played. The format is very quick and different compared to normal tennis.”

Kirsten Flipkens

“I tried to stay positive and aggressive when I had the chances and did not want to repeat yesterday’s mistakes. I’m happy to have come out with a win. We just have to continue and win games because each game is important to us in the League.”

Match Scores

2014 IPTL Manila Leg Photo Gallery By Marlon A. Bernabe / BurnSports.Ph