Our nations’ tennis mavens will convene at Indian Wells for a schoolyard draft unlike any other.
World TeamTennis will start their 44th season on Tuesday, March 12, at 2pm with their version of a high stakes fantasy tennis draft. It will be livestreamed on wtt.tv as well as WTT’s Facebook, Twitter, and Youtube platforms. Eight teams in the league will take turns to choose from a pool of highly ranked players that previously declared their intention to play. Two of the teams opened for business just last Tuesday, with the league announcing that the formation of Orlando Storm and Vegas Rollers.
The hardware 🏆 has arrived! Who wants it more? The #RoadToTheKingTrophy begins here!
Watch the #WTTDraft LIVE from #IndianWells, site of the @BNPPARIBASOPEN, Tuesday at 2PM ET / 11 AM PT here on @TwitterSports, @facebook, @YouTube and https://t.co/ct0wcLQsdu! pic.twitter.com/mhf2hIBCWK
— World TeamTennis (@WorldTeamTennis) March 11, 2019
Vegas Rollers staff consists of General Manager Sally Dewhurst and coached by Tim Blenkiron, who has worked with Asia Muhammad. The Rollers will be playing at the Orleans Hotel and Casino. Orlando Storm will play their games on USTA’s National Campus in Lake Nona, Florida. Jocelyn Davie is their General Manager and the team coach is Mixed and ATP Doubles veteran Scott Lipsky.
San Diego Aviators coach John Lloyd, Springfield Lasers coach John Laffnie de Jager, Philadelphia Freedoms coach Craig Kardon, Orange County Breakers coach Rick Leach, and Washington Kastles coach Murphy Jensen are all slated to return. In a gutsy move done last month, the New York Empire have signed Murphy’s brother Luke to become the team’s new coach.
Teams are allowed to keep, or protect, the players they picked last season by forfeiting their pick. Two players can be picked together as a doubles unit and team officials may discuss trades with other teams, provided there is enough time between picks to do so.
The players that compete for a majority of the WTT season become eligible to earn season-ending bonuses. Although a team only needs four players, and may choose to not make a selection to keep their operational budget in mind, they are encouraged to select a highly ranked superstar that is only obligated to play 1 match at home and on the road. That player is considered “Marquis” and is relied upon to win matches and pitch the team and the league to the tennis community.
We also have a primer on the basics and scoring of World TeamTennis.
World TeamTennis To Come Back To CBS
WTT CEO Carlos Silva also announced last Thursday that CBS and CBS Sports Network will be the new broadcast partner of the league. The first matches of the WTT Season will be played on July 14th and the championship match will be played at the Orleans Casino on August 3rd.
WTT is proud to announce a new partnership with @CBSSports!
The multi-year deal begins this summer with @CBS broadcasting @PhillyFreedoms vs. @VegasRollersWTT on Sat, July 21 and @CBSSportsNet televising 15 matches beginning Mon, July 15!
Read more! https://t.co/iKcEI9J6mI pic.twitter.com/uM2WF42xqG
— World TeamTennis (@WorldTeamTennis) March 7, 2019
In last year’s championship match, the Springfield Lasers defeated the Philadelphia Freedoms to win their first WTT title ever in 24 seasons.
Main Photo:
Embed from Getty Images
