RAFAEL NADAL ENDS IPTL RUN WITH THE ACES IN FIRST PLACE, ONE MORE WEEK FOR ROGER FEDERER BY RICKY DIMON

Written by: Staff on 13th December 2015

RAFAEL NADAL ENDS IPTL RUN WITH THE ACES IN FIRST PLACE, ONE MORE WEEK FOR ROGER FEDERER BY RICKY DIMON

epa05032977 Switzerland's Roger Federer celebrates after his three sets win over Japan's Kei Nishikori during a singles group match at the ATP Tour tennis finals tournament at the O2 Arena in London, Britain, 19 November 2015. EPA/ANDY RAIN |

Editors Note : It was so much fun watching them play doubles against each other. Only thing better someday is seeing them play together. We love what Mahesh Bhupathi Had Created. It’s a great Atmosphere. Bravo “HESH”. We noticed Roger was playing with his ROLEX on. Just saying. (LJ)

Rafael Nadal’s debut season in the International Premier Tennis League came to an end this past weekend, but not before he positioned his Indian Aces team extremely well for a berth in the championship match. Nadal capped off his week in style, as the Aces cruised past Roger Federer and the UAE Royals on Saturday night.

Playing in New Dehli, the home team put up a perfect 30 by taking six games in all five of the sets. Nadal played a part in two of those victorious sets, beating Roger Federer in singles after teaming up with Rohan Bopanna to defeat Federer and Marin Cilic in doubles. The 14-time major champion won his doubles match 6-4 and got the best of Federer in a tiebreaker.

Nadal twice gave back a break during the singles set and Federer also recovered from 15-40 down while serving to get into a ‘breaker at 4-5. Although they were playing in the Aces’ home, nobody could have been disappointed when a tiebreaker had to decide it–especially not one fan who wielded a “Federer is better than Free WiFi” sign.

Spain’s Rafael Nadal of the Indian Aces in action against Canada’s Milos Raonic of the Philippine Maverics during their men’s singles match at the second leg of the International Premier Tennis League (IPTL) at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay city, south of Manila, Philippines, 08 December 2015. The IPTL features five teams made out of a hybrid mix of current and former men’s and women’s players. EPA/MARK R. CRISTINO

“I’m happy to play here against Roger and the crowd gave us a lot of love,” Nadal commented. “I played here one day before, so in a sense I had an advantage. But playing Roger is always exciting.”

The fifth-ranked Spaniard will now go back to the practice court, as he awaits Joao Sousa’s arrival in Mallorca for a week of training. As for Federer, he will play the final two legs of the IPTL–Dubai and then Singapore.

“I had a slow start and Rafa already played a match here,” the 34-year-old Swiss assessed. “The season’s just beginning, so I’m bound to be a bit rusty. Considering those circumstances, I played pretty well. Overall it was a great experience. I play in Dubai on 15th and 16th, followed by Singapore on 18th.”

Federer has some work to do if he wants his team to find a way into the championship match in Singapore. The Royals are currently third in the standings with 49.6 percent of their games won. They trail the Singapore Slammers (51.0 percent) for the all-important second spot.

Nadal and the Aces have won a dominant 57.7 percent of their games for a huge lead on the table.

Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand.

Topics: 10sballs.com, Atp, International Premier Tennis League, IPTL, Rafael Nadal, Ricky Dimon, Roger Federer, Tennis News

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10sBalls_com says:

December 13, 2015 at 8:40 pm

-@RafaelNadal Ends @iptl Run With The Aces In First Place, One More Week For @rogerfederer by @Dimonator
https://t.co/Skos65baEQ #IPTL2015