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| Team UAE Royals |
We are thrilled to report that after 9 months, it looks like we finally have our banking situation all organized! The key was to use a local bank (who got us setup in 2 weeks) instead of a multinational.
While in Dubai, we seized the opportunity to take in some tennis by going to the IPTL Team Tennis tournament that was in town for the final stop of its tour.
Looking to expand tennis' appeal internationally, the IPTL team tournament was a brilliant tennis showcase. The tournament hosted some of the world's best players - both current and former champions - who were divided into four different teams representing four different countries. Each of the four countries then hosted a leg of the tournament. As such, the players moved from Singapore to Manila to Mumbai and then finally to Dubai.
Some of the big stars (like Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Serena Williams, Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras, Maria Sharapova) did not travel to all of the cities, showing up primarily to anchor their home team and perhaps one other country. But many other big names (Ivanesevic, Tsonga, Monfils, Ivanovic, Berdych etc) did the entire circuit.
To keep the tournament moving along (and avoid overwhelming tennis newbies with very long matches and overly complicated rules), each match was determined in only one set and "deuce" was decided simply by who won the next point. This allowed a wide variety of players to participate in a large number of games and show a variety of different types of matches - with big name players such as Djokovic participating in some doubles matches.
At the end of the tournament, both the number of sets and the number of games per set were counted to determine the winning team.
Even though the Indian Aces actually clinched the tournament victory over the Dubai Royals (followed by the Manila Mavericks and the Singapore Slammers) on the second last day, each day of the three day tournament in Dubai was so much fun.
For tennis fans, the reasonably priced tickets and ease of getting tickets (the stadium was far from full!) as well as the tournament's relaxed nature, makes this a great tournament to attend. And the event sponsors seem to feel the investment in the tournament is worth it. The tournament was considered such a success that it looks like two other countries will be added to the tournament next year. We are already counting down the days!
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| Beth's two faves (Djokovic and Tsonga) practicing together! |
Some of the big stars (like Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Serena Williams, Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras, Maria Sharapova) did not travel to all of the cities, showing up primarily to anchor their home team and perhaps one other country. But many other big names (Ivanesevic, Tsonga, Monfils, Ivanovic, Berdych etc) did the entire circuit.
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| Fan Favourite - Goran Ivanisevic |
At the end of the tournament, both the number of sets and the number of games per set were counted to determine the winning team.
Even though the Indian Aces actually clinched the tournament victory over the Dubai Royals (followed by the Manila Mavericks and the Singapore Slammers) on the second last day, each day of the three day tournament in Dubai was so much fun.
For tennis fans, the reasonably priced tickets and ease of getting tickets (the stadium was far from full!) as well as the tournament's relaxed nature, makes this a great tournament to attend. And the event sponsors seem to feel the investment in the tournament is worth it. The tournament was considered such a success that it looks like two other countries will be added to the tournament next year. We are already counting down the days!
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