The Happiness Open: An event to be most thankful for

The Coca-Cola IPTL has brought together the Indian tennis fans like no other competition. In that, the Happiness Open has truly set a singular precedent. This aspect, however, forms just the tip of the iceberg as far as advantages the event has brought forth are concerned. 

There are a lot of reasons to be thankful for the Coca-Cola IPTL, and the five most prominent ones can be highlighted as under:

The platform of unique team compositions

Tennis, by and large, is an individual sport. Except for the Davis Cup and Fed Cup events, the game is played solo by the players, who travel across the globe in a tightly scheduled 11 month time-frame.

But the Happiness Open brings forth a totally different platter of team tennis, and a confluence of seriousness and light-hearted moments which enriches the sport. In the process, it has invigorated the players, bringing out the competitive best in them while also helping them have fun. 

Foes turned into friends

Players who are usually fierce rivals have turned into team-mates, cheering and egging each other on. Moments like these are rarely seen on the professional tennis circuit. How often will you see Andy Murray and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga high-fiving each other and shouting words of encouragement from the bench? 

The hitherto unseen camaraderie between the players has added to the allure of the Coca-Cola IPTL, making it an event which transcends the otherwise obvious boundaries of competitiveness. 

The world’s best competing in previously untapped locations

The only tennis tournament conducted by the ATP in India is the Chennai Open, which takes place right at the start of the season, in the capital city of Tamil Nadu. The ATP Chennai Open does – and has, in the past – attracted some of the world’s best tennis players on tour like Carlos Moya, Rafael Nadal, Stan Wawrinka, Marin Cilic and Tomas Berdych to name a few. 

But Djokovic and Federer have been largely missing due to their commitments in other parallel ATP events, leading to disappointment amongst the country’s widespread legion of tennis fans. The Happiness Open has thus given the fans a brilliant opportunity to see and experience the magic of these two players, first-hand, at home. 

Development of tennis

As a sport, tennis, despite its prevalence through the years, still continues to be shrouded in the shadows. The ostensible shortcomings of Indian tennis have, of course, been well-documented. But identifying the problem hasn’t made way for the solutions in the past.

The Coca-Cola IPTL can help resolve this problem rather efficiently. By using the thrust of the Happiness Open, a much stronger and concrete pathway can be paved for the future of Indian tennis, starting with improved infrastructure and increased awareness among the masses. 

The recurring theme

The most important reason to be thankful for the Coca-Cola IPTL is its recurring theme, which makes the event all the more interesting. In its maiden year itself, the event has garnered success, accolades and appreciative comments from all over the world and this can be seen as a pre-cursor for many more beautiful moments to come in the next few years.