Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/759501
maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 7 DECEMBER 2016 23 THE troubled competition had already reduced its format from five cities to three for 2016 and has now lost its two biggest stars due to financial issues. Mahesh Bhupathi, managing director of the IPTL, said: "We have had challenges this year, and we were hoping to get past them. "With the current economic climate in India and the un- certainty of spending money, I reached out to both Roger and Serena to explain the situation. They have been both been very supportive of the IPTL the first two seasons and we look forward to bring them in future years." Federer's agent Tony Godsick told the New York Times that Federer "hopes to play in future years if the IPTL continues". This year's problems for the IPTL will see some question whether it does indeed have a future. The tournament, which features a short format of the game, began in 2014 and in its first two years attracted some of the biggest names in the sport, including Federer, Williams, Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal. It has been a different story in 2016 and with big names not guaranteed, fan interest has not been high with poor crowds blighting last week 's opening leg in Japan. Many fans are an- gered by the withdrawal of the big names and have demanded refunds. The IPTL has said it will ad- dress the issue of refunds "soon". Federer, who has been out since July following knee sur- gery, had been scheduled to play in Hyderabad next weekend. His comeback will now have to wait until January's Hopman Cup in Perth. Williams, who has not played since the US Open due to a shoulder injury, had been due to compete in the Singapore leg of the competition on Tuesday. She will now return to action at the ASB Classic in Auckland from January 2. With no Williams, Federer or Kei Nishikori, who played in last weekend's leg in Saitama, availa- ble in Singapore, the top-ranked singles player at the second three-day leg of the tournament will be world number 10 Tomas Berdych, of the league-leading UAE Royals. Sport Answers to the MaltaToday crossword will be published next Wednesday WEATHER: Cloudy with showers locally thundery VISIBILITY: Good locally moderate to poor in showers WIND: Southeast force 4 backing East force 4 to 5 and becoming force 5 overnight and with gusts near storms SEA: Moderate becoming rough overnight SWELL: Low South Southeast Sea Temp.: 20°C A B C D E F G H 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 White to play and mate in four moves A B C D E F G H 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Last week's solution Sudoku rules are extremely easy: Fill all empty squares so that the numbers 1 to 9 appear once in each row, column and 9x9 box. PARTLY CLOUDY 19 º C / 15 º C UV INDEX: 2 Today's Weather Chess Sudoku Pursuits Across 6. Whisky (6) 7. Rowing implements (4) 8. Possess (4) 9. Midday nap (6) 10. Royal (5) 12. Nasal grunt (5) 15. Round body (6) 17. Having little hair (4) 18. Digits (4) 19. Make less tight (6) Down 1. Buccaneer (6) 2. Christmas (4) 3. For grooming hair (5) 4. Contemporary (6) 5. Worry (4) 11. Prejudice against old people (6) 13. Alleviation of pain (6) 14. Greeting (5) 16. Trudge (4) 17. Printed volume (4) e6+ Kg7 Bd4# TENNIS Roger Federer and Serena Williams have both pulled out of this season's International Premier Tennis League Federer, Serena out of IPTL Roger Federer won't play in the 2016 IPTL after all