The world mourned Friday after learning football icon Pele had passed away. The news hit close to home for Brazil’s United Cup team, which battled hard to honour the legend in Brisbane.

“I think everybody, not just us, but Brazil and the whole world is going to miss him,” Luisa Stefani said after her mixed doubles win alongside Rafael Matos. “He’s got a great personality and he’s a great ambassador for football, but also for sport in general. He managed to get people united, which I think is what we’re trying to do with this tournament.”

Stefani added: “We played today to honour him and to celebrate him because that’s what he did. He played with his heart, he showed love to everybody, so that’s what Team Brazil is going to do not only today but for the rest of the tournament and the rest of the year. So thanks Pele, rest in peace.”

Thiago Monteiro, Brazil’s No. 1 men’s singles player, reflected on Pele’s impact on his day-to-day life.

“Pele, he has a huge legacy in the sport. We call him ‘The King’ because of the history that he has in football and for me personally, I always try to get inspired by him with the love that he showed playing football and [doing so] professionally. Also he did everything with such energy and such passion that I just try to keep this to myself and tried to follow this path the way he did,” Monteiro said. “Today is obviously a sad day for us, a sad day for Brazil.

“I think the most important thing is he made everybody in our country happy and he was such an inspiration for many, many generations. He has a big legacy, maybe the best one in the sport for us. He was our hero. He’s still our hero for [a long] time to come.”

Former doubles World No. 1 Marcelo Melo is not competing in the United Cup, but the 39-year-old echoed the sentiments of his compatriots.

“Today unfortunately is a very sad day in Brazil, all over the world. Pele has passed way. Pele was an icon, an idol not only for Brazil but all over the world,” Melo said. “For kids, he inspired so many, many people to start to play soccer, to do sports. He represented Brazil in so many good ways. All over the world, [people] recognise him maybe as the best soccer player.

“Unfortunately he left us today, but for sure he’s going to continue inspiring many, many kids to start to play soccer, to believe they can achieve like him.”

Former doubles World No. 2 Bruno Soares, who retired last season, added that while it is a sad day for Brazil, it is a day to celebrate Pele’s legacy and life.

“Pele is the biggest idol we have not only in sports, but in general. He’s an incredible person, a beautiful human being. Even my generation and most of the people around me, we didn’t even get to see him play,” Soares said. “But it’s been incredible to witness his legacy and everything that he brought to sports and to Brazil, always carrying the flag and representing the Brazilian people with so much love and so much pride. Today’s a sad day, but a day to celebrate his life because Pele is ‘The King’. There’s only going to be one.”

WTA Finals champion Caroline Garcia kicked off the new season as she had left off the last one: in phenomenal form. The World No.4 dispatched Nadia Podoroska 6-2, 6-0 in just 64 minutes on Friday as France completed a 5-0 win against Argentina in the United Cup.

Garcia had only conceded three games against Podoroska in their sole previous meeting, in the second round of Monterrey 2017, and went one better this time as she racked up 24 winners in just 14 games to move Team France into an unassailable 3-0 lead.

Podoroska had a rough start to the match, with two foot faults contributing to a pair of double faults in the opening game the second down break point. Garcia needed little help to impose her swashbuckling strategy on the Argentinian, though.

Swarming the net at every opportunity, including straight off several returns, the 29-year-old won 18 out of 24 points in the forecourt. She conceded only two points behind her first serve and never faced a break point.

Former Roland Garros semifinalist Podoroska, who was sidelined due to injury for 10 months between 2021 and mid-2022, needed to battle hard just to get two games — both requiring break point saves — on the board. Garcia went from strength to strength as she raced towards the finishing line, finding clean winners to seal all four of her service breaks in the second set and hammering away a smash in style on her first match point.

Garcia’s win means that France have wrapped up victory in their first tie without dropping a set. Indeed, following Day 1’s straight-sets wins from Alizé Cornet and Arthur Rinderknech, the French team have only dropped 11 games over the first three rubbers.

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“I felt very good,” said Garcia afterwards. “It’s never easy to start a new season, and it’s a new format of competition. I wanted to play well for myself, to put my game together after a good few weeks of practice, but competition is always different. Obviously beyond that I wanted to help my team to win the tie, so I’m very happy with my performance.”

Victory was also sweet due to reversing the result of the FIFA World Cup final earlier this month, in which Argentina defeated France on penalties.

“We all wanted to have our little revenge,” said Garcia. “But my coach [Juan Pablo Guzman], who is Argentinian, wearing the France T-shirt was pretty funny.”

France’s unbeaten start to the United Cup was later extended by Adrian Mannarino, whose clean and precise hitting proved too strong for Federico Coria. The 34-year-old raced to a 6-1, 6-0 victory in just 62 minutes to open up a 4-0 lead for his team in the Group F tie.

The highlight of the match was a stunning tweener winner from ATP No. 46 Mannarino to break serve at 4-0, 40/A in the second set. He raced backwards to retrieve a flat Coria forehand and connected with the ball just inches from the ground to arrow an incredible passing shot that had the RAC Arena crowd — and the Team France player box — in raptures.

“Honestly, I got lucky on that one,” said Mannarino in his post-match press conference. “I was able to run well, that’s the first thing, and then it was just a question of luck. I was feeling good on the court.”

“I was not really paying attention to what they were saying,” added Mannarino when asked about his teammates reaction to his remarkable winner. “Obviously they were quite excited, but I was trying to stay focused and finish the match.”

Team France’s mixed-doubles duo of Garcia and playing captain Edouard Roger-Vasselin then completed the clean sweep for the sixth-seeded nation in its opening match. The pair defeated Podoroska and Tomas Martin Etcheverry 6-2, 6-4 to ensure its team won the tie without dropping a single set across the five matches.

“It’s a great day, great matches,” said captain Roger-Vasselin. “The players were amazing. Today when I stepped on court I had to be as good as them, which was not that easy. I’m super proud of them.

“Besides the quality of the match, it’s also the team spirit. We are having fun together on court and off court as well. It’s great to start the competition with a 5-0 win. You never know. It can be very important in the future in the competition, so every match is important. That’s why we really wanted to win this mixed doubles. Now we will enjoy our day off tomorrow.”

Instead of ‘Captain Stan’, call Stan Wawrinka ‘Captain Clutch’.

Wawrinka clinched Switzerland’s first United Cup tie win on Friday when he defeated Kazakhstan’s Alexander Bublik 6-3, 7-6(3) in the No. 1 men’s singles match. Switzerland holds an insurmountable 3-0 lead with No. 2 women’s singles and mixed doubles still to come.

“I was super happy when they announced this United Cup, to have the chance to play for the Swiss with my teammates and everybody and to play here in Brisbane. Tonight was a great level,” Wawrinka said. “I’m super happy with the way I was playing. I’ve been working really hard to be back at a better level and I’m happy with the performance today.”

Entering the match, former World No. 3 Wawrinka was 0-2 in his ATP Head2Head series with Bublik, one of the trickiest shotmakers on the ATP Tour. But the Swiss star was sharp in his first match of the season, trading his captain’s hat for his racquet in a one-hour, 31-minute victory.

Wawrinka, who spent all of Thursday evening cheering for and providing guidance to his team, was locked in from the start against the big-serving Kazakhstani. The 37-year-old did not lose his serve in the match and did not allow Bublik to control the rhythm of their clash.

“Alexander is a great player, always tough to play. He has a tough game to play against, big serve. He’s always trying to put pressure, so for me it was important here on that court to be the aggressive player, to always show him that any opportunity I will have I will go and I will push him back,” Wawrinka said. “So I think I did a great job today and I am super happy to have won in two sets. At my age it’s not easy to keep playing too long, so it’s great.”

The Swiss won 85 per cent of his first-serve points and did not face a break point. Bublik had an opportunity to turn the tide in the tie-break, but two sloppy drop shots proved too much to overcome.

Wawrinka was happy to not only start off his own season on a high, but to do so for his country and his team in Brisbane.

“I think it’s an amazing experience to play this United Cup, to put women’s and men’s tennis together with the same country,” Wawrinka said. “To have the chance to be the captain, to see tennis in a different way, in a different position, I’m really enjoying [it].”

Harriet Dart defeated Maddison Inglis 6-4, 6-4 to seal a win for Great Britain over Australia at the United Cup. Team GB will move to the top of Group D and prepare to face Spain next.

Great Britain came into Day 2 with a 2-0 lead over the host nation after Cameron Norrie and Katie Swan posted straight-set wins on Day 1. Ranked No. 98 and playing in the No. 1 position for Great Britain, Dart seized her chance to clinch the tie by winning the coveted third point to build an unassailable 3-0 lead.

“Maddy played really great tennis today and I had to work for it,” Dart said. “First match of the year, I was really nervous, but the crowd were great.”

World No. 180 Inglis was a late substitution in singles after Australian No.1 Ajla Tomljanovic withdrew from the match due to a left knee injury. With Captain Sam Stosur urging her on, the 24-year-old from Perth acquitted herself well and, after a slow start, consistently challenged Dart from the baseline.

But Dart held her ground with clutch serving and a devastating day on her forehand. The 26-year-old Brit won 83% of her first serve points and was broken just once in the match. On her first match point, Dart fired her fifth ace of the match to take it after 92 minutes.

_{^{Frances Tiafoe celebrates winning first set in Sydney on Friday.}}

_{^{Frances Tiafoe and Tomas Machac ahead of their United Cup match.}}

_{^{Petra Kvitova in action on Friday.}}

_{^{Petra Kvitova celebrates her victory in Sydney.}}

_{^{Matteo Berrettini competes for Team Italy on Friday in Brisbane.}}

_{^{Maria Sakkari secures victory for Team Greece in Perth. Photo Credit: Getty Images}}

^{_{Grigor Dimitrov supports Dimitar Kuzmanov from the Team Bulgaria player box on Friday in Perth.}}

_{^{Maria Sakkari and Stefanos Tsitsipas share a joke during their mixed-doubles victory on Friday afternoon in Perth.}}

_{^{Jason Kubler celebrates victory against Daniel Evans.}}

Photo Credit: TENNIS AUSTRALIA

Team Greece have sealed the first victory of Group A at the United Cup in Perth after Maria Sakkari defeated Viktoriya Tomova 6-3, 6-2 in one hour and 27 minutes, giving her team an unassailable 3-0 lead over Team Bulgaria.

WTA No.6 Sakkari had lost to Tomova in their first meeting, over six years ago in the 2016 Szeged ITF W50 final. But she had gained revenge in the second round of Wimbledon 2022, and once again showed how far she has come in establishing herself as a solid Top 10 player.

The first half of the opening set was tightly contested, with Tomova’s defensive skills and changes of pace drawing Sakkari into a number of extended exchanges. Indeed, it was the WTA No.90 who captured the first break, going up 2-1 as Sakkari leaked a double fault and errors on the forehand and at net.

But Sakkari responded with an immediate break back thanks to aggressive returning, and the pair remained neck-and-neck until the seventh game. After Sakkari had held for 4-3, Tomova required a medical timeout and returned with her lower left leg strapped.

On resumption, the Bulgarian’s attempts to shorten the points were a contrast to her earlier successful tactics and did not pay off. Sakkari broke for 5-3 by quickly tracking down a Tomova dropshot, and then converted her first set point with a forehand winner.

It was the second time in as many days that Team Bulgaria had been afflicted by injury. Like compatriot Isabella Shinikova on Day 1, Tomova continued to compete valiantly — but through the second set, she was unable to disrupt Sakkari’s fine rhythm on serve. The Greek player only conceded three points behind her delivery in the second set and broke the Tomova serve twice as she sped to victory.

Former World No. 3 Dominic Thiem was awarded a main draw wild card into the Australian Open, the tournament announced Friday.

World No. 102 Thiem, who is continuing his comeback from a wrist injury, has enjoyed plenty of success at Melbourne Park. In 2020, the Austrian earned three consecutive Top 10 wins — including an upset of first seed Rafael Nadal — en route to the final at the season’s first major. Only Novak Djokovic was able to stop him in the championship match.

Thiem owns a 19-8 record at the Australian Open and has advanced to at least the Round of 16 in four of his past five appearances.

Tournament organisers also announced main draw wild cards for American Christopher Eubanks and Frenchman Luca Van Assche.

Eubanks is playing the best tennis of his career. The 26-year-old qualified for last year’s US Open, where he reached the second round of the main draw. The American also reached ATP Challenger Tour finals in the United States shortly thereafter.

Eighteen-year-old Van Assche reached a career-high No. 137 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings in December. The Frenchman won the Roland Garros boys’ singles title in 2021.

Matteo Berrettini made a good start to his season Friday and in doing so put Italy in position to close out its tie against Brazil at the United Cup.

The Italian powered past Brazilian No. 1 Thiago Monteiro 6-4, 7-6(7) to give his country a 2-1 lead. Lucia Bronzetti will now try to clinch the Group E tie in the No. 2 women’s singles match when she faces Laura Pigossi.

“Pretty happy I have to say. It’s been a long time since I’ve played my last singles match, so I didn’t know what to expect. I think the level was pretty high,” Berrettini said. “I’m happy for my performance, but obviously when you play in these kind of competitions the most important thing is to get the win and bring a point for the team and that’s why I’m even happier.”

Berrettini needed two hours and 51 minutes to defeat Monteiro last year on the clay of Rio de Janeiro. Their clash Friday was also tough, but after saving two set points in the second set the favoured Italian used his bigger game to hit his way to victory in Brisbane after one hour and 56 minutes.

Monteiro battled valiantly for his country, hitting a tremendous forehand passing shot at one moment late in the second set that drew raucous applause from the Pat Rafter Arena crowd. He also benefitted from the encouragement of his Team Zone, with captain Rafael Paciaroni and coach Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo urging him on throughout.

But his opponent’s firepower was simply too much to overcome. Berrettini dominated play with his serve — winning 88 per cent of his first-serve points (38/43) and not facing a break point — and dictated rallies with his forehand at every opportunity.

The No. 16 player in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings was unable to break serve in the second set and found himself up against it in the tie-break down 4/6. But after finding a sharp angle at the net in a cat-and-mouse point to retrieve the mini break, he did not relinquish another service point.

“It’s all about the heart, especially when you’re playing for Italy. When you see your teammates in the box, you have to give a little bit more and that’s what I tried to do,” Berrettini said. “Always playing tough matches against Thiago, really tough player. But I think I played better in the important moments and that’s why I won.”

With the luxury of a late start at the inaugural United Cup, Team Spain took full advantage of some leisure time by taking a trip to the iconic Sydney Harbour on Thursday. Led by Rafael Nadal, Pablo Carreno Busta and Paula Badosa, the Spaniards will open play on Saturday — New Year’s Eve — against Great Britain.

“We’re going to try our best to start in a good way and then enjoy the last day of the year,” Nadal said. “Starting with a good result on the 31st helps to finish the year in a positive way… We’re going to work as a team, and let’s see if we can [take] our chances.”

The 36-year-old never played for Spain at Hopman Cup, and he is enjoying the unique experience of the mixed-gender event in Australia.

“It’s a new experience, new type of competition,” he said of the United Cup. “I think all of us, we are very excited to enjoy this special one… We never worked as a mixed team.”

While Nadal and World No. 13 Carreno Busta give Spain strong representation from the ATP Tour, Badosa will be an equally important part of the team’s success. The 25-year-old reached a career-high ranking of No. 2 last April and enters this season at World No. 13.

“It’s my second time here in Sydney,” said Badosa, who won a WTA 500 in the city to kickstart her 2022 season one year ago. “Last year when I came here I really enjoyed it. I went for a walk, I went to visit the opera… nice restaurants as well.”