THE SINGAPORE SLAMMERS produced yet another flawless performance by whitewashing (5-0 sets) the listless Philippine Mavericks (30-22 games) in the International Premier Tennis League yesterday in New Delhi.
The Slammers wasted little time in getting into their groove and from set one to the last set of the evening, the Singapore team won sets with aplomb to further dent the Mavericks’ confidence.
In the first set of the day, Mark Philippoussis and Carlos Moya started by exchanging a few balls from the baseline, but it was Moya who broke his compatriot to gain the early advantage. However, the Australian hit back with a break of his own. In the end, the Spaniard held his nerve and broke Philippoussis at the closing stages of the set to seal a win 6-4.
The mixed doubles pairing of Pliskova/Brown came out firing on all cylinders and look poised for a comfortable win. However, the duo of Huey/ Tomljanovic too held their ground and produced some quality returns. As expected, the match went into a shoot-out after almost 30 minutes of exciting tennis. In the end, the Slammers’ pair edged their opponents to grab the set 6-5.
In the women’s singles, Slammers’ Belinda Bencic and Mavericks’ Ajla Tomljanovic stuck to their preferred method of indulging in rallies from the back. Both women also served poorly and relied winning games by breaking each other’s serve. In the end, the Swiss upped the ante at crucial moments to wrap up the set 6-3.
The men’s doubles saw some sensational hitting from Kyrgios/Melo and Huey/Roger-Vasselin. All four men involved came up with some splendid doubles tennis and produced a few spectacular winners. With no team ready to give an inch, the set had to be decided by a shoot-out. In the end, with some clever shot-making, the Kyrgios/Melo nailed the set 6-5.
In the final match of the evening, both Nick Kyrgios and Roger Vasselin exchanged some intriguing rallies from the back court. The Australian kept hammering down the aces while, the Frenchman too, stuck to his aggressive ploy. After a tight set, it was the 20-year old who got the win for his team in a entertaining shoot-out 6-5.
Kyrgios once again played a key role in Slammers’ win and didn’t hold back expressing his feeling after the match,
“We had a great match today, winning all our sets. I love the IPTL, it’s a great format, and I really look forward to this time of the year. For me personally, it’s not difficult adjusting to the regular game when I go back on the tour. It’s just fine. On the year gone by and the year ahead, he added, “I’ve had a great year, played some fantastic tennis, made it deep in the Grand Slam draw which is great.”
While the Philippine Mavericks have finished their Delhi leg of the IPTL, the Singapore Slammers will play their final match in India tomorrow against the Japan Warriors.