International Premier Tennis League: Will It Be An Ace Or Love?

Come 2014 and former Indian tennis player Mahesh Bhupathi will reveal something very exciting for both sports and business. A proposed marriage between tennis and the world of business, International Premier Tennis League (IPTL) aims to model itself after the grandiosity and market intelligence of other international league sports. Businesswise, too, it makes sense. After all these years of hardcore sports that we have seen, the world has started looking at sports in a way that’s beyond the actual sports events.

In a global village, we are well aware of the fact that sports events are no longer limited to sporting activities alone. For a player, it is definitely about winning (if possible) some coveted events and competitions that are pitted to receive some hyped up media coverage. Then things move onto a different league, literally. Sponsorship is part of a sportsperson’s life, if he dreams of making it big, nationally or internationally. Therefore, when business houses support budding sportspersons, the underlying message is never just encouragement or philanthropy.

With the grand success of the Indian Premier League (IPL) where cricket reached a new height and stirred up the kind of frenzy we had never seen before, other sports are just waiting to join the big league. Tennis and golf are glamorous games as well, with a plethora of international events providing the much-needed exposure to sportspersons. And when a champion like Andy Murray decides to entrust Bhupathi (one of his chief business managers) with the entire branding exercise, it won’t be wrong to surmise that tennis is just waiting to be ‘discovered as a brand’ in countries that are yet to witness its full potential from every aspect.

Bhupathi is a heady mix of sports and sheer business acumen – a rather uncommon and prized combination in the arena. As a winner of multiple doubles and mixed double Grand Slam titles during the days when the media didn’t pay much attention to tennis, he had seen the world slowly take note of the business sense that sports made. The winners are already basking in media limelight for their achievements and this means instant familiarity with the viewers.

At his swanky office on Linking Road in upmarket Mumbai, Bhupathi sits to unravel the equation between tennis and business. Here, the sport will be packaged as entertainment and sold to the excitement-hungry crowds. An ideal content for the mass media would be up for grabs, sooner than later.

What would it pack apart from excitement? The joy of watching the tennis stars live as they sweat it out on the courts. Right now, we don’t get to see too many of them. Players will be soon chosen through an auction, which is scheduled to take place before the Australian Open in January. And bidders, depending on their choice and capacity, can pick up the players across five price categories.

Players at the IPTL will be categorised based on their ranking, popularity and potential. Not a single element that makes for the market would be left out while considering the categorisation! So who all will be there on whom you can feast your eyes? Of course some big names – both men and women – would be roped in to add zing to this project. Former tennis stars might be seen here too, whipping up some action on-court and bringing back the good old days of pure sport.

But what about the economy behind this? For starters, Bhupathi says that there will be five-set matches lasting for three hours in all and teams of 6-10 players. He has also worked out a ballpark figure for a sports event of this stature and it is going to be around $4-10 million in franchise alone, including salaries of the players across the table.

Viewed as an elite competition that will feature the world’s best through six franchisees across the nations, IPTL has surely raised high expectations and excitement among the tennis fraternity.

The potential of this project is immense. Going by world No. 1 Novak Djokovic’s response, this plan is ‘revolutionary’ and Bhupathi is not among those who would want to see the excitement wane. Now that expectations are running high, he knows that he should get cracking with the plans at the earliest; else this can fall flat on the face.

Curtain will go up on the IPTL in November 2014 or latest by December that year. Till then, Bhupathi and his team hope to keep up the excitement, starting with the bidders and holding events relating to the inauguration.

Interestingly, the event will be held at the hot seat of fashion and arts. Paris has been chosen to play host to IPTL’s inaugural event. Now all ye tennis lovers, you know where you are going to be when the event takes place. Book your tickets, Now!

Image: Indiatimes