Hubert Hurkacz and Iga Swiatek were the heroes for Poland on Wednesday, sending their country to the United Cup Final Four in Sydney. The Polish stars won a deciding mixed doubles match in the Brisbane City Final, defeating Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti and Camilla Rosatello 6-1, 6-2.

Hurkacz had lost the No. 1 men’s singles match earlier in the evening, but he returned to Pat Rafter Arena with Swiatek, who had won the No. 1 women’s singles match, to clinch the tie. The Poles were in control throughout, and the pair embraced after Swiatek hit a final volley into the open court.

“[It feels] amazing, honestly. I don’t know. I think it’s better winning in a team than individually. I’m so happy that we did it together and team effort for sure paid off,” Swiatek said. “Today’s match was pretty stressful because we [don’t] play mixed doubles usually. But I’m so happy that I was able to play a solid game and Hubi was pushing our opponents and really making it easy for me. So I’m really happy that we played such a nice game.”

The only impediment to the Poles’ masterful performance was the rain. There is a roof on Pat Rafter Arena, but there were two short delays early in the second set when sideways rain made its way onto the court.

During those breaks, Italy’s No. 1 men’s singles player, Matteo Berrettini, and captain Vincenzo Santopadre urged their team on, providing motivation and tactical advice. But it was not enough, as Hurkacz and Swiatek triumphed after 65 minutes.

“Definitely it was a little bit stressful before the match. Obviously Team Italy is a really super strong team,” Hurkacz said. “It was a very interesting matchup, but it was definitely a lot of fun to play mixed doubles to decide and… to win as a team is something special. And having Iga as a partner the way she hits the ball, it’s just amazing. Definitely the girls carried the team today, so thanks for that!”

Magda Linette gave her country a chance by levelling the tie at 2-2 with a win in the No. 2 women’s singles match. Just 24 hours after clinching Poland’s win over Switzerland on Tuesday with a physical win over Jil Teichmann, the World No. 48 delivered again. Linette played a focused, disciplined match to defeat Lucia Bronzetti 6-1, 6-2 in one hour and 12 minutes. 

Photo Credit: Getty Images
In the first match of the evening session, World No. 16 Berrettini relied on his big serve and booming forehand to secure a 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 triumph against Hurkacz after one hour and 57 minutes 

“I’m really happy for the performance, for my teammates obviously,” Berrettini said. “I think the level was really high. Hubi is a great player. We fought in the past, I’m sure we’re going to fight in the future as well. So I’m really, really happy. A little bit tired, but really happy.”

Berrettini made a quick start, breaking Hurkacz’s serve immediately. However, the encounter turned into a heavyweight clash between the two 2021 Nitto ATP Finals contenders.

There was little to differentiate between the stars, with the critical moment coming at 3-2 in the deciding set. Berrettini hit two sensational passing shots in the game to give himself a break opportunity, which he converted when the Pole missed a forehand long. The Italian now leads their ATP Head2Head series 2-1.

It was Berrettini’s second Top 10 win in as many days, having defeated World No. 3 Casper Ruud on Tuesday. He also beat Thiago Monteiro in his first match of the season.

“I think the key today was my mental toughness,” Berrettini said. “I wasn’t playing as good as yesterday, but tennis is like this. Every day is different, so I’m really happy for that.”

“Everything about how I play is from my mum.”

Stefanos Tsitsipas is in no doubt about the influence that his mother, former WTA pro Julia Apostoli, has had on his rise to the top of the game. Not just in terms of raising him and supporting him courtside since he was a junior, but also directly influencing the fundamentals of his game.

“Single-handed backhand, serve and volley sometimes, it’s from my mum,” the nine-time tour-level titlist told ATPTour.com this week. “My mum was a very aggressive player. Nowadays you don’t see many women with a single-handed backhand, but she had a beautiful one, it was her best stroke that she used very effectively. It’s something I consider a strength of mine as well. She has taught me so much about that particular shot and she gives me advice on the net game as well.”

This week in Perth, Tsitsipas has spearheaded Team Greece’s United Cup campaign alongside another Top 10 star who grew up as the child of a tennis player, WTA No. 6 Maria Sakkari. Her mother Angeliki Kanellopoulou reached a career-high No. 43 in the WTA Rankings in 1987.

“I think it’s very special that we [Stef and I] are two very good players and both have very special mums,” said Sakkari. “For us, it’s an inspiration having two very powerful women in our lives and supporting us.

“She always tells me to enjoy it because a tennis career is very short. Towards the end of your career, you realise that you should’ve enjoyed it more, so that’s what she’s trying to teach me. I think I have been doing well lately, enjoying my time on the Tour.”

_{^{Maria Sakkari and her mother, Angeliki Kanellopoulou. Photo Credit: WTA/Jimmeie48}}

Apostoli and Kanellopoulou, who know each other well, are regular presences in Tsitsipas and Sakkari’s respective team boxes on Tour, and both are happy to discuss their own experiences of playing professionally if it helps guide their children through their own careers.

“It’s very helpful to have someone who has played at the professional level,” said Sakkari. “They can really understand all these emotions we feel on the court and obviously teach us a lot of things and tell us their opinions. The main thing is having their support because they know exactly how we feel on the court. If I struggle, I can ask my mum for advice, which is very helpful.”

“She has instilled in me the discipline,” added Tsitsipas of Apostoli. “She hasn’t been easy with me, and I think that’s for a reason, to make me grow up stronger. She’s also a very loving, caring mum. I owe a lot to her. One thing I perhaps have learned from her is that to not have anything external or from the other side of the court affect you, that’s how you can get down on yourself and even lose matches.”

Neither 24-year-old Tsitsipas nor 27-year-old Sakkari are old enough to remember their mums’ professional playing careers. Yet Sakkari admitted that Kanellopoulou’s legacy alone, particularly in Greece, did not always make things easy for her as she tried to forge her own career in the game.

“At the age I fell in love with tennis, I was too young to understand what my mum was,” said Sakkari. “She has a big name back at home in the tennis community. Once I realised she was a very good player, it wasn’t easy to handle. Everyone expects you to win because your mom was very good. At the same time, I just found a way to block it out and play my tennis, but always having her by my side.”

For Tsitsipas, at least one of his mum’s achievements as a pro is symbolically linked to his own career. The 24-year-old is a two-time champion at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, where Apostoli also won a singles title during her career.

“It was quite a cool achievement to share my name with my mum on the wall at the Monte Carlo Country Club,” said Tsitsipas. “I remember going there for the first time when I was about 10 years old and seeing my mum’s name on the plaque. I was just thinking, ‘Maybe someday I can achieve something similar’.

“That’s where my whole career kind of started. I used to go to southern France and play local tournaments when I was eight. Monte-Carlo Country Club was one of the very first clubs I visited abroad and one of the first tournaments I watched as a kid. Being able to see Nadal face Federer and other tennis legends, it has a special connection in our family.”

_{^{Stefanos Tsitsipas embraces his mother Julia Apostoli after winning in Monte Carlo in 2021. Photo Credit: Valery Hache/AFP via Getty}}

Although she cannot remember them, Sakkari still draws lessons from her mother’s stories of her playing days.

“Of course there have been a lot of stories,” said the two-time Grand Slam semi-finalist. “When they played, travelling and communication was tougher. The differences between now and then aren’t shocking to us, but it makes us appreciate more how easier life is today.”

Not all old family tales set the best example for the next generation, however, something acknowledged by Tsitsipas when sharing a light-hearted anecdote from his mother’s early days.

“My mom and her twin sister used to play doubles a lot, they were champions back in the USSR,” explained Tsitsipas. “My aunt used to serve all the time when they played doubles because she had the better serve and a few times the opponent realised that [only one of them was serving]. The referee told them to change socks so that he could differentiate them!

“This is some of the smart tactics and mentality my mum implemented in me… [But] not in a bad way!”

Team United States sealed its spot in the United Cup Final Four Wednesday when Frances Tiafoe rallied past Daniel Evans 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 to give his nation an unassailable 3-1 lead against Great Britain in the Sydney City Final.

Walking onto court with the United States leading 2-1, Tiafoe showcased his all-court game to improve to 3-0 on the season. The World No. 19 timed his forehand cleanly to pull Evans around and he looked comfortable moving forward, clinically finishing points at the net on Ken Rosewall Arena.

In a tense deciding set, Tiafoe kept up his intensity and aggression in the crucial moments to frustrate Evans, earning the decisive break in the fifth game. With his two-hour, 11-minute win, the 24-year-old increased his ATP Head2Head series lead against World No. 27 Evans to 4-2.

Tiafoe has won all three matches he has played this season, also beating Czech Republic’s Tomas Machac and Germany’s Oscar Otte.

The United Cup Final Four commences in Sydney on Friday. The best runner-up from across the three City Finals will also progress to Ken Rosewall Arena.

Earlier, World No. 3 Jessica Pegula had given the United States a 2-1 lead when she produced a masterclass display to defeat Harriet Dart 6-2, 6-0 in 57 minutes.

“I think Madi really set the tone with her match,” Pegula said. “I think I did everything really well today. I could feel it. Some days you come out firing and you feel really good. I was honestly trying to settle myself down because I was seeing the ball really well today.”

In the afternoon session, Madison Keys moved her nation ahead after rallying from a set down to defeat Katie Swan 2-6, 6-3, 6-4. World No. 14 Cameron Norrie had the perfect response, putting Great Britain on the board with a clutch 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 win against World No. 9 Taylor Fritz.

Stefanos Tsitsipas maintained his perfect start to the 2023 season on Tuesday at the United Cup in Perth, coming through a topsy-turvy encounter with Borna Coric 6-0, 6-7(4), 7-5 against Borna Coric to earn a vital City Finals point for Team Greece.

The World No. 4 took to court under pressure after Donna Vekic defeated Despina Papamichail to give Team Croatia a 1-0 lead in the tie, and he had to dig deep as Coric staged a recovery after saving two match points at 5-6 in the second set. The Greek was then in trouble at 1-4 behind in the decider, but he rallied to a thrilling two-hour, 32-minute win that left the Perth City Final at 1-1.

“Whenever I play [Borna], it’s definitely not easy, but I keep reminding myself that it doesn’t get better than this and his level of tennis is going to improve my level of tennis,” said Tsitsipas after the match. “So yeah, I’ve lost some, now I’ve won some too. It’s important to get matches against opponents like this that raise the bar high. They require you to find ways to win, even when you’re not feeling your best.”

Coric prevailed in both his meetings with Tsitsipas in 2022, including a notable victory in the final of the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati, but the Greek showed no early signs of being affected by those defeats as he dominated the first set on RAC Arena. Tsitsipas’ all-around game was dialled in as he dropped just two points on serve in the set and was clinical in converting all three of his break points.

The World No. 26 Coric had shown impressive form in the group stage in Perth, where he opened with wins against Francisco Cerundolo and Arthur Rinderknech, and he reacted well to dropping his first set of the 2023 season. The Croatian produced a couple of searing backhand winners during a second set that offered few chances against serve.

Tsitsipas almost made his move in the 12th game, but Coric saved two match points to force a tie-break and then stayed consistent to level the match after opening an ultimately unassailable 6/2 lead. The momentum was all with Coric as he broke Tsitsipas for the first time in the match and opened a 4-1 lead in the deciding set, but the Greek’s big hitting continued to pull Coric effectively around the court. He won five of the last six games, finally sealing victory with his sixth match point.

“I was just trying to continue that momentum that I built from the very first moment when I entered the court,” said Tsitsipas. “He responded very fiercely in that particular moment, so I just had to continue with the way I fight, with the way I do things, and I’m so, so glad… That last shot was the moment I was really looking forward to and a very good down-the-line backhand in fact, it surprised me. What a relief.”

The City Final will be decided in the evening session in Perth, where Greece’s WTA No. 6 Maria Sakkari will meet Petra Martic in the No. 1 women’s singles match. Michail Pervolarakis is scheduled to take on Borna Gojo in the fourth singles match before a final and potentially decisive mixed doubles clash.

Vekic had earlier given Croatia a strong start to the City Final with an emphatic 6-2, 6-0 defeat of Papamichail in just 64 minutes.

The No. 158-ranked Papamichail had impressed in her United Cup campaign so far, pulling out a three-set win over Isabella Shinikova on Day 1 and then delivering a superb performance in defeat against Alison Van Uytvanck. But the 29-year-old had few answers to Vekic’s relentless power.

Papamichail showed off her trademark grit in the first game, saving four break points for an early hold. But Vekic converted her sixth break point of the day in the third game, winning a rally that featured net cords and a cat-and-mouse volley exchange before Papamichail put a smash wide.

Thereafter, Vekic settled and began to dominate. The former WTA No.19’s return was in fiery form, particularly on the off forehand, one of which captured another break for 5-2. She leavened her power with finesse, too, with the drop shot proving increasingly successful. The second set was near-flawless from the Croatian, who conceded only eight points and did not face a game point during it.

Cameron Norrie delivered a vital victory for Team Great Britain on Wednesday when he clawed past Taylor Fritz 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 to level his nation’s City Final tie against Team United States at 1-1.

The pressure was on Norrie after American Madison Keys defeated World No. 145 Katie Swan 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the opening match on Day 7 in Sydney. However, the World No. 14 was not fazed, playing consistently from the baseline to move past Fritz after two hours and 15 minutes on Ken Rosewall Arena.

Norrie successfully soaked up Fritz’s aggressive hitting and demonstrated his supreme fitness levels in the decider, outlasting the World No. 9 to improve to 3-0 on the new season. With his victory, the 27-year-old levelled his ATP Head2Head series against Fritz at 6-6.

The tie continues later today when Jessica Pegula faces Harriet Dart. Frances Tiafoe will play Daniel Evans in the fourth singles tie.

If the teams are locked at 2-2 after singles, the match will come down to mixed doubles, which is scheduled to showcase Pegula and Tiafoe against Dart and Evans.

The winner of the tie will advance to the United Cup Final Four, which commences in Sydney on Friday. The best runner-up from across the three City Finals will also progress to the Final Four.

Great Britain has served as a fantastic underdog foil at the United Cup, having tallied upset wins over Australia and Spain in group play. Swan looked keen to continue the trend early, as she jumped on a slow-starting Keys to take the opening set.

The big-serving American bounced back quickly to take the second set but could not hold on to an early lead in the decider. Swan broke back to 3-3 in the third set off a shakey double fault from the American, and it appeared as though Tim Henman’s squad had regained the momentum for good.

But Keys showed her experience in the end. She played a disciplined and patient return game to break Swan one final time to 5-4 and coolly served out the win after two hours and 18 minutes.

Norrie and Fritz then entered the stage and served up an intriguing battle in the latest chapter of their rivalry. Both turned to their Team Zones throughout the clash for support, while they played at a high level, ripping the ball off both wings to pin each other back. With little to separate them, it was Norrie who found a way, gaining the decisive break in the ninth game of the third set before closing out on serve.

Daniil Medvedev had to scratch and claw in his opening match of the season, saving nine set points in his first set of 2023. The former World No. 1 faced no such difficulties on Wednesday.

Medvedev cruised past Miomir Kecmanovic 6-0, 6-3 to advance to the Adelaide International 1 quarter-finals. He will next play Karen Khachanov for a place in the last four.

“It’s always better to win 6-0 than to win 7-6 saving nine set points and playing one hour, 20 [minutes],” Medvedev said. “But tennis is not as easy, otherwise everyone would be No. 1, but we have only one. So happy with my level today against a strong opponent. Second set was tougher, but managed to close it out at the end and looking forward to my next matches.”

The third seed saved the only break point he faced to triumph after 67 minutes. Medvedev now leads the pair’s ATP Head2Head series 3-0, winning all seven sets they have played.

Kecmanovic maintained contact in the second set, holding his first three service games. But Medvedev landed the knockout blow at 4-3, delivering a laser-like backhand winner up the line to earn his fourth service break of the match.

If Medvedev and Novak Djokovic both advance to the semi-finals, they will meet in a blockbuster showdown in Adelaide. However, Medvedev will be fully focussed on facing his friend, Khachanov.

“I actually don’t remember exactly where was the last time we played,” Medvedev said. “We’ve both changed a lot. He’s a very strong opponent, he can beat anybody. He beat Jack today, who is a young guy on the rise, so looking forward to this tough match.”

Khachanov defeated 2022 Next Gen ATP Finals competitor Jack Draper 6-4, 6-2. The 26-year-old did not lose serve in the match.

“To be honest I was expecting a very tough match against Jack because we had a good battle in the US Open, which unfortunately finished not in the way I wanted, but he retired in the end of the third set,” Khachanov recalled. “He’s on a good run, he’s a good rising-up player, younger than me. To be honest with you from the beginning until the end, I played a very solid match, very good performance from my side.”

Lorenzo Musetti gave Italy a perfect start in the United Cup Brisbane City Final on Wednesday when he cruised past Poland’s Daniel Michalski.

The two-time ATP Tour titlist and Next Gen ATP Finals alumnus was in full control on Pat Rafter Arena, showing his class in a 6-1, 6-1 win against the World No. 260. The Italian lost just three service points in his 58-minute victory.

“Of course the serve worked really good,” Musetti said. “But I mean every shot [I] had a great feeling with the ball since the first hit on the court. I think I played for sure the best match of the year.”

Poland will look to quickly strike back when WTA World No. 1 Iga Swiatek takes the court against World No. 27 Martina Trevisan, a lefty who made last year’s Roland Garros semi-finals. That clash will be followed by the No. 1 men’s singles match between 2021 Nitto ATP Finals competitors Hubert Hurkacz and Matteo Berrettini, which kicks off the night session not before 5:30 p.m.

Musetti oozed with confidence from the first ball against Michalski, waving his racquet like a wand on the court. Michalski struggled to find his rhythm early, which allowed the World No. 23 to play from the lead, which he never relinquished.

“Today I was moving really, really fast with the feet and I think that’s a key part for my game,” Musetti said. “Today I was on fire from that side, so I could manage the match in a positive way.”

The Italian is now 3-0 at the inaugural United Cup. Musetti also earned straight-set victories against Brazilian Felipe Meligeni Alves and Norwegian Viktor Durasovic.

Brisbane City Final Order Of Play

Not Before 2:00 pm

Not Before 5:30 pm