International Premier Tennis

As part of the rules implemented in discussions, ‘marquee’ players are not required to play any set number of matches, being afforded freedom to pick and choose what they do.

Understandably, it could be argued that the IPTL would only further the strains on the players, giving them no time to relax, but the reality in the modern game is that players – for all their public agitation – choose to undertake intense training in the off season regardless.

Furthermore, the top players have long incensed tournament directors by not making themselves available for mainstream Tour events due to tiredness, only to fly across the world to appear at a lucrative exhibition next to an iceberg or on top of an Abu Dhabi skyscraper.

Each contest will consist of five separate sets, contested in men’s singles, women’s singles, men’s doubles, mixed doubles, and legends’ singles with eight matches between five city-based teams, played home and away, running over three weeks from the end of November to late December.

As Murray reasoned: “If I can go somewhere for one week and set up a camp where it’s warm and there are good training conditions, if I’m playing against the best players in the world, that’s the only thing that is missing from Miami.” As a radically different event to the standard annual fare in an area of the world where the popularity of tennis is burgeoning, the IPTL has undeniable potential.