Fast formats gain traction as Tie Break Tens lights up Indian Wells

BENGALURU, March 7 - Short-format tennis events such as the Tie Break Tens at Indian Wells can complement the traditional game by offering a quicker, high-intensity spectacle for modern audiences, British coach Jamie Delgado said. Read more at straitstimes.com.

BENGALURU, March 7 - Short-format tennis events such as the Tie Break Tens at Indian Wells can complement the traditional game by offering a quicker, high-intensity spectacle for modern audiences, British coach Jamie Delgado said.

The mixed doubles curtain raiser for the combined ATP and WTA tournament was played in a packed stadium in the Californian desert this week, with Taylor Fritz and Elena Rybakina defending their Eisenhower Cup title and pocketing the $200,000 prize.

Launched in 2015, Tie Break Tens is built around the premise that every match is a tiebreak and the first to 10 points with a margin of two wins. Leading names like Novak Djokovic, Serena Williams and Rafa Nadal have all previously played in it.

Its success reflects a broader trend across tennis, where innovative formats like the Tie Break Tens, the MGM Slam, the Ultimate Tennis Showdown league, and Tennis Australia's Fast4 and One Point Slam have gained traction with fans.

"Tie Break Tens was the first one, I think, of the fast-format tennis events and since then we've had a few creep in as well, but it's a good thing," Delgado, the former coach of Andy Murray and current mentor of Jack Draper, told Reuters.

"It's not something that's trying to replace traditional tennis, the long matches and normal scorelines. I love the way the sport works in that sense.