Marin Cilic looking to contribute for the UAE Royals in the IPTL

Marin Cilic of the UAE Royals

Croatian tennis star Marin Cilic looks forward to participating in the inaugural season of the Coca-Cola International Premier Tennis League.

The 9th-ranked Croat will join forces with men's world #1 Novak Djokovic, Eugenie Bouchard, Caroline Wozniacki, Goran Ivanisevic, Nenad Zimonjic and Malek Jaziri for the UAE Royals, and he believes that they as a team will be "difficult to beat."

For Marin, his decision to be a part of this tournament is about the chance for fans in untapped markets to see their favorite netters.

"For me a big part of the decision came because in the countries where we’ll play, people can’t see players too often. It’s a really nice opportunity to interact with them and try to play in cities I have never played in before."

With the competition to be played in four Asian cities, three of which he has never been to before (Manila, Singapore, and New Delhi), he is looking forward to playing in those venues, with the hope that he could take the time to go sight-seeing.

Marin also says that the competition's unique format, adhering to its mantra of "Breaking the Code," intrigued him the most, as well as the opportunity to see many great tennis stars playing. Matches for him would be "extremely interesting, quicker, and different," which would bring more excitement to the court.

He adds that the team aspect is very different, vis-a-vis when you play in individual tournaments. In spite of the difference, his approach remains the same, "to play my game and to try to win every match I am playing," Marin says.

The 6'6" Croat had a career year this season: achieving his best ranking ever (8th) last October, while winning four titles, including the 2014 US Open. He feels that he improved in virtually all aspects of his game, which for him provides confidence for the upcoming season.

The IPTL will be played first in Manila on November 28-30, then Singapore on December 2-4, New Delhi on December 6-8, before finishing in Dubai on December 11-13.

For the Manila leg, the Royals will be the opening round opponent of the Manila Mavericks on November 28. They would then face the Singapore Slammers on November 29, and close things out against the Micromax Indian Aces on November 30.