IPTL 2016 | Indian Aces defeat UAE Royals to top points table

12/07/2016

Indian Aces defeated UAE Royals 26-19 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on Tuesday to go to the top of the IPTL points table and open up a 3-point lead. Rohan Bopanna and Sania Mirza got the better of Pablo Cuevas and Martina Hingis in their match, avenging the loss in their last encounter.

Kirsten Flipkens gave the Aces an early lead by defeating former World No.1 Ana Ivanovic 6-3. Flipkens, who reached the semis of the Wimbledon in 2013, broke her opponent’s serve thrice in the game despite Ana getting 71% of her first serves in (compared to 56% for the Belgian).

Rohan Bopanna and Sania Mirza doubled that lead for Indian Aces as they triumphed over Pablo Cuevas and Martina Hingis 6-3. The Indian duo hit 14 winners in the set, and committed just 5 unforced errors as they gained two service breaks.

In the third tie, Mark Philippoussis also avenged his loss against Thomas Johansson from their last encounter. The duo almost matched each other in winners and unforced errors, but it was Philippoussis’ composure on big points that won him the game. He converted 2 of the 3 break points he received in the match, while Johansson could not convert any of the 3 chances he received.

With the Indian Aces opening up an 18-9 lead, UAE Royals were in desperate need of a win to remain in contention of the match, and Thomas Berdych gave them that chance by beat Feliciano Lopez 6-2. Berdych hit 12 winners and broke Lopez’s serve thrice in the match to take the overall score to 20-15.

Royals needed a convincing win in the final match to win the tie, but Ivan Dodig and Lopez held their fort to defeat Cuevas and Daniel Nestor 6-4 in the men’s doubles match. Dodig and Lopez served up 15 winners and won seven points at the net (compared to just 1 for Cuevas and Nestor).

With this win, Indian Aces have reclaimed their place at the top of the table with 10 points from four matches, opening up a 3-point lead over UAE Royals and Singapore Slammers.

Indian Aces 26-19 UAE Royals

Kirsten Flipkens 6-3 Ana Ivanovic

Bopanna/ Mirza 6-3 Cuevas/ Hingis

Mark Philippoussis 6-3 Thomas Johansson

Feliciano Lopez 2-6 Tomas Berdych

Dodig/ Lopez 6-4 Cuevas/ Nestor