Aussies draw 'powerhouse' rival in new Cup

2 years ago 75

Australia volition look disconnected against Spain and Great Britain successful the radical stages of the inaugural United Cup - a caller mixed tennis tourney to beryllium played Down Under this summer.

The squad contention format is simply a round-robin tourney that includes entries from tennis' top-ranked countries.

Of the 18 countries involved, each necktie volition comprise 2 men's and 2 women's singles matches and 1 mixed doubles match.

Top-ranked Aussies Nick Kyrgios and Ajla Tomljanovic volition skipper the greenish and gold, portion instrumentality favourites Alex de Minaur, Jason Kubler, John Peers, Zoe Hives, Maddison Inglis and Samantha Stosur implicit the remainder of Team Australia.

The tourney volition beryllium played crossed Brisbane, Perth and Sydney from December 29 to January 4, successful the pb up to adjacent year's Australian Open. Each metropolis volition big 2 groups of 3 countries.

The winners of each radical - with the summation of the champion performing squad from the radical signifier - volition past look off, with the metropolis winners advancing to the last 4 which volition beryllium held successful Sydney from January 6-8.

"The United Cup is simply a historical infinitesimal for tennis, a historical infinitesimal for our sport," United Cup tourney manager Stephen Farrow said.

"For implicit 130 years the precise champion antheral and pistillate tennis players person travelled the satellite playing this beauteous crippled and present they volition vie unneurotic - successful 18 planetary teams - for the precise archetypal clip for adjacent points, for adjacent prizemoney, connected a fantastic planetary commencement to the tennis calendar."

United Cup Official Draw (16 of 18 teams named)

Brisbane

Group B: Poland [2], Switzerland, Combined 6 TBD

Group E: Italy [5], Brazil, Norway

Perth

Group A: Greece [1], Belgium, ATP 6 TBD

Group F: Spain [6], Croatia, Argentina

Sydney

Group C: United States [3], Germany, Czech Republic

Group D: Spain [4], Australia, Great Britain

"What a monolithic tract Sydney has," erstwhile Australian tennis pro Casey Dellacqua said of the city's allocations.

"Talking to Australia, [it's] precise breathtaking with Nick (Kyrgios), Alex (de Minaur) and besides Ajla Tomljanovic, who had a large twelvemonth astatine back-to-back quarter-finals successful expansive slams astatine Wimbledon and the US Open.

"With Rafael Nadal and Jessica Pegula for the United States arsenic well, it's a monolithic line-up successful Sydney."

"That's beauteous tremendous erstwhile you look astatine the extent of the United States, and evidently Spain who correspond with specified pride, I had them arsenic my apical favourites," Aussie tennis fable Wally Masur added.

"And Australia is specified a well-balanced squad and they're are each stacked successful the 1 city.

"Let's not hide Alexander Zverev, he's the No.1 for Germany and No.2 successful the world, and Great Britain are precise beardown connected the men's broadside too, truthful that's beauteous delightful for the Sydney fans."

The apical six WTA ranking-qualified countries, apical 5 ATP ranking-qualified countries and the apical 5 combined introduction countries person been admitted to the competition.

The last 2 remaining countries (one ATP and 1 combined entry) volition beryllium accepted into the contention connected November 21, based connected the rankings published connected that date.

The lawsuit volition connection much than $23 cardinal successful prize wealth and up to 500 ATP and 500 WTA rankings points.

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