Novak Djokovic has withdrawn from the IPTL. The International Premier Tennis League, which is set to begin tomorrow, enjoys some of tennis’ biggest stars gracing their presence this offseason. Djokovic was set to play for the Singapore Slammers. He will be replaced by the duo of Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka. The two will rotate in which cities they will play in.
The Rest Of The Singapore Slammers
The Slammers are comprised up of six more players, four men and two women. The four male players that Murray and Wawrinka will be joining are Nick Kyrgios, Dustin Brown, doubles player Marcelo Melo, and legend Carlos Moya. The two female players they will be joining are Belinda Bencic and Karolina Pliskova.
Murray Set For Dubai
Newly crowned Davis Cup champion Murray will play two days in the IPTL later this month. The Scot will play in Dubai because it fits in with his training session that takes place there. The IPTL heads to Dubai from December 14-16 and matches will be played in the Aviation Club Tennis Center.
Kyrgios And Wawrinka Cross Paths Again
We’re sure you’ve all heard the story by now between the Aussie and the Swiss, and if you haven’t, well here it is. Back at the Aegon Championships at the Queen's Club. After the Australian said a combination of homesickness and the flu was the reason for his horrid display, Wawrinka responded with this, “I think he's saying a lot of things every day, so it's quite interesting for journalists to hear that. I'm sure he's not going to switch off. I'm sure he will be ready for Wimbledon, because if he switches off two weeks of tennis, then he can go home and not play Wimbledon. It's coming up. "
“So you need to be ready if you want to play well. But this doesn't really surprise me. When I read his interview, it's always funny, a lot of things you can take. When I read before the match he was ready, excited for the challenge, and now he was sick. So I'm just saying he's saying a lot of things, and I think it's always interesting as a player to read what he's saying and how his mind is working.”
After that, the two met at the Rogers Cup. During the match, Kyrgios said this to the French Open champion, “Kokkinakis banged your girlfriend. Sorry to tell you that mate.” That remark earned Kyrgios multiple fines and has forced the ATP to put him on a conditional suspension should he incur fines totaling $5000 or earn a fine from verbal or physical abuse. He also said, "He's banging an 18-year-old," which incurred him another fine.
With this being a fan-friendly event, it will be interesting to see if the two can put aside their bad blood for the good of the fans and the league.