Rafael Nadal all set to join cash-rich International Premier Tennis League

Rafael Nadal

The International Premier Tennis League has reportedly managed to rope in current World No. 1 Rafael Nadal to their new competition. The competition has been developed along the lines of the Indian Premier League and Nadal is set to be the highest-profile player in the tournament whose auctions begin this weekend in Dubai.

Nadal, who will be participating as a “marquee” player in the tournament, will be earning a whopping $1 million per night, if the reports are to be believed. Mahesh Bhupathi, the Indian doubles legend who is slowly branching into the world of business, has developed this league along with the legendary Boris Becker of Germany.

As per the ground rules of the league, a player who has won a Slam or has been No. 1 at any point in his career will be able to nominate himself for the matches that he wants to play, and those which he wants to avoid.

Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Mumbai, Singapore and Hong Kong are the five cities where the competition is scheduled to be held from November 28th to December 20th this year. On Sunday, at the Oberoi hotel in Dubai, each city-based franchise will be able to bid for the players.

Victoria Azarenka, the two-time Australian Open winner, reportedly leads the line of women’s players, which also includes at least two more players from the current top 10. Former World No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki along with Agnieszka Radwanska are also believed to have joined the fray.

17-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer is not involved with this league, but he has expressed support for it. Meanwhile, British No. 1 Andy Murray is currently in discussions with Bhupathi, who played a brief role in the former’s commercial team before concentrating fully on this project.

The gestation period for the ITPL has not been free of controversy and doubt, but an inside source said last night that things are all set to take off in a big way.

“Although the players are still sceptical, nobody wants to miss out on a possible money spinner, so a lot of them are putting their names down for Friday’s reveal. When the money starts being paid into their accounts, that’s when they will start believing that this concept is for real,” the source revealed.