IPTL 2016: Indian Aces begin campaign with easy win over hosts Japan Warriors

Saitama, Japan: The Indian Aces began their 2016 IPTL campaign with an easy 30-17 win over hosts Japan Warriors at the Saitama Super Arena on Friday. Indian team’s Kirsten Flipkens made the most of her return to the IPTL with a 6-2 win over Kurumi Nara in the women’s singles. Flipkens hit 19 winners against the Japanese. [caption id=“attachment_3137212” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Indian Aces began IPTL 2016 with a win. Image Courtesy: Twitter@IPTL[/caption] The Mixed Doubles contest was a thrilling one, decided on a shoot-out that also had a Power Point. The Sania Mirza Rohan Bopanna duo prevailed 6-5 against Jelena Jankovic and Jean-Julien Rojer. The Legends set between Australian Mark Philippoussis and Russian Marat Safin was decided in a couple of points, where the former was more effective than the latter, winning 6-3. Men’s Doubles action didn’t disappoint either with a great clash between experts but again, the away side got the upper hand as Feliciano López and Ivan Dodig kept the momentum going and denied Jean-Julien Rojer and Fernando Verdasco the win with a 6-2 scoreline. The match finished with a Spanish derby between two great friends, Feliciano López and Fernando Verdasco. The Indians made a five out of five with a López 6-5 win on a shoot-out. “Mark served pretty well. I had a few chances but it is the way it is. We finished last last year so hopefully we won’t do it again this year. It was just the first day and I think everybody was a little bit nervous. Kurumi was playing under a lot of pressure probably because she wanted to delight the home crowd. I am sure she will be more relaxed during the next matches,” Safin said. “I want to say thank you to the fans. It is really nice to see people that still remembers you from the old days and they cheer you up no matter if you are winning or losing. They are still there. It is very cute to see,” he added. Mark Philippoussis said," I am really happy with the way I played on Friday. It was very important to get the points right at the beginning because Marat is a very strong player. I was very pleased with the team outcome and how everybody played."