Li too busy for league, targets No 1

Australian Open champion Li Na on Monday defended her decision to skip the International Premier Tennis League, as she targets more Grand Slams and the world No 1 ranking.

The inaugural edition of the IPTL takes place this year with matches in Bangkok, Mumbai, Singapore and Dubai aimed at raising the profile of tennis across Asia and the Middle East.

But the event, inspired by cricket's financially successful Indian Premier League, has been dealt a blow by the absence of Asia's top male and female players: Japan's Kei Nishikori and world No 2 Li.