United Cup tennis – who will Great Britain face? Who are Rafael Nadal and Nick Kyrgios playing?
/dnl.eurosport.com/sd/img/placeholder/eurosport_logo_1x1.png){kind=logo}
Updated 14/12/2022 at 15:27 GMT
Great Britain will take on Spain and hosts Australia in a daunting United Cup group in Sydney at the end of the year. Rafael Nadal and Paula Badosa lead the Spanish side, while Nick Kyrgios and Ajla Tomljanovic are among the stars in the hosts' squad. The brand-new mixed team tournament features 18 countries and will take place across three Australian cities between 29 December and 8 January.
Highlights: Fritz beats Medvedev in two sets to claim big cash prize
Great Britain face a daunting task against Rafael Nadal's Spain and hosts Australia for the upcoming, inaugural United Cup mixed team event.
The brand-new tournament will be the curtain-raising event for the 2023 season, taking place from 29 December to 8 January across three Australian cities: Sydney, Perth and Brisbane.
It features the top 18 countries in the world, split into six groups of three teams each, with the three group winners and best runner-up progressing to the semi-finals.
A star-studded field of players - Nick Kyrgios and Iga Swiatek are among those featuring alongside Nadal - will take part, with each team bringing four male and four female players.
Great Britain’s quartet of men’s players are Cameron Norrie, Dan Evans, Jan Choinski and Jonny O’Mara, while the women comprise Harriet Dart, Katie Swan, Anna Brogan and Ella McDonald.
The Brits face a tough challenge in Sydney against a Spanish side led by 22-time Grand Slam winner Nadal and also featuring the world No. 13s in both the ATP and WTA rankings: Pablo Carreno Busta and Paula Badosa.
Hosts Australia boast two top-25 men’s players, Kyrgios and Alex de Minaur, as well as women’s world No. 33 Ajla Tomljanovic.
Sam Stosur, Australia co-captain, reckons Kyrgios will bring his "best tennis" to the new event.
She said: “It’s no secret that he [Kyrgios] loves the team environment, playing in a group and in a team, and it does seem to bring out some of his best tennis.
“I’m sure the United Cup is going to be no different to what we’ve seen him do in those sorts of situations before.
“He loves playing at home, and it will be at Ken Rosewall Arena and hopefully have great crowds and excitement. It’s going to be good fun.”
Greece are the top seeds, led by world No. 3 Stefanos Tsitsipas and No. 6 Maria Sakkari, while Poland are second seeds, with women’s No. 1 Swiatek and men’s No. 11 Hubert Hurkacz in their ranks.
The United States are seeded third, with Jessica Pegula and Madison Keys in their women’s roster, and Taylor Fritz and Frances Tiafoe among the men.
Brisbane
Group B
- Poland
- Switzerland
- Kazakhstan
Group E
- Italy
- Brazil
- Norway
Perth
Group A
- Greece
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
Group F
- France
- Croatia
- Argentina
Sydney
Group C
- United States
- Germany
- Czech Republic
Group D
- Spain
- Australia
- Great Britain
- - -
Stream the 2023 Australian Open live on discovery+ and eurosport.co.uk
Scan me
Related Topics
Share this article
Advertisement
Advertisement