Figure this. Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi are playing their guts out at the Cricket Club of India tennis courts in Mumbai.
In the stands is Steffi Graf, who has just lost her tie to Martina Hingis.
Leander Paes, the icon player of Team Mumbai is rooting for Sampras while his rival Mahesh Bhupathi is urging Agassi on to win it for Team Bangalore.
All this, just to be the champion of the Indian League... Sounds familiar?
Notwithstanding the controversies, the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) has managed to inspire other sports to go its way.
And if all goes well, one may well see the likes of Sampras, Agassi, Gustavo Kuerten, Goran Ivanisevic, Hingis and Graf battling it out in India very soon.
These are just a few names in what could be a tennis lover’s dream list.
Taking a cue from the cash-rich cricket extravaganza, the All India Tennis Association (AITA) finally launched its long overdue Indian Tennis League (ITL) on Friday, slating the league to kick-start in November or December this year.
In a bid to stimulate a rather dull domestic tennis circuit, the ITL was initially planned in 2008 but didn’t materialise.
However, a confident-looking Anil Khanna, the general secretary of AITA, revealed the mega-plan on Friday which, if successful, promises to take Indian tennis to the next level.
“The executive committee of AITA met today and decided to start the ITL featuring icon players of international tennis, top Indian players and juniors,” Khanna announced.
While it is still to be decided which cities will be a part of the inaugural league, he said they will be targeting the metropolis to get a wider audience. The procedure of selecting the international as well as national players has not yet been finalised.
“We have discussed the idea with a few top Grand Slam winners and also Indian players. All of them are excited about the idea,” said Ivan Brixi, president of Golazo Asia, the sports marketing company which will be administering the event.
AITA has formed a six-member committee, headed by Khanna himself. None of the committee members will be allowed to hold a stake in the teams.
“Imagine our youngsters rubbing shoulders and spending two weeks with the legends of the game. If anything, it will be most
beneficial for them,” said India’s Davis Cup coach SP Mishra.
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