Tennis News

Gauff downs Sakkari, giving USA a crucial edge vs. Greece

When Coco Gauff is at her best, it’s not far-fetched to say the American puts the star in “stars and stripes”.

So it came as no surprise that Gauff delivered in a big moment on Wednesday in the United States’ quarter-final tie against Greece. The World No. 4 defeated Maria Sakkari 6-3, 6-2 in one hour and 26 minutes at RAC Arena, giving the United States a pivotal 1-0 lead ahead of a men’s singles blockbuster between Taylor Fritz and Stefanos Tsitsipas.

What made Gauff’s performance even more impressive was that she was coming off one of her rougher outings in recent memory, particularly on serve. Those issues were nowhere to be found under the sunny Perth skies, as the 21-year-old led wire-to-wire.

“Definitely a much better match today,” Gauff said in her on-court interview. “Last match, I just tried to erase it. That’s the beauty of this tournament, and having a team like Taylor [Fritz] and Christian [Harrison] that gave me the chance to stay in the tournament and be able to prove myself better today. So definitely happy to give my team the lead today.”

Gauff posted much-improved numbers from the service line, landing 68 per cent of her first serves while winning 76 per cent of those points. After hitting 14 double faults just two days earlier, she cut that total to just six against Sakkari en route to victory.

For Sakkari, the match was a step back in what has otherwise been a promising week, highlighted by wins over Naomi Osaka and Emma Raducanu. While the season is only just beginning, 2026 looms large for the 30-year-old. A former Top 5 player on the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz, Sakkari enters the year at No. 52 in the PIF WTA Rankings.

Gauff’s win marks her third straight over Sakkari, giving the American a 6-5 edge in their head-to-head.

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Hurkacz sends Poland to United Cup quarter-finals

Poland has qualified for the quarter-finals of the United Cup after Hubert Hurkacz defeated Tallon Griekspoor 6-3, 7-6(4).

Entering the tie, Poland needed to win one match to guarantee its spot in the last eight at the mixed-teams event. Hurkacz wasted little time, producing a dominant serving performance in which he hit 20 aces and did not face a break point.

“Definitely didn’t know how I was going to start the season. Haven’t played for seven months, so you don’t really know what to expect,” Hurkacz said. “I was playing okay in the practice, but practice is so different from the match when you have so many emotions, you have fans around. I’m quite positively surprised and pleased with that performance out there.”

Prior to this tournament, Hurkacz had not played since June 2025 because of a knee injury that required surgery. But the former No. 6 player in the PIF ATP Rankings has come out firing in the new season with straight-sets victories against World No. 3 Alexander Zverev and Griekspoor.

“After such a long period you’re just so excited to be out there and it also gives you a different perspective on things,” Hurkacz said. “I think that’s why I’m able to perform maybe better and even stay calm in the difficult moments.”

Poland will face home favourite Australia Friday evening Sydney in what promises to be a scintillating clash. Hurkacz’s side is pursuing its first United Cup triumph after back-to-back runner-up finishes.

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Australian Open offers record prize money – but stars still 'disappointed'

The Australian Open will offer a record prize pot of £55m at this year’s tournament – but players are still likely to be unhappy a source says.

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Wong makes Hong Kong history on home soil

Coleman Wong became the first man representing Hong Kong in tournament history to win a match at the Bank of China Hong Kong Tennis Open on Tuesday, when he dispatched Mariano Navone 6-3, 7-5.

The 21-year-old had suffered defeat on his previous two appearances at the ATP 250 event but ensured it would be third time lucky. The wild card, who reached the third round at the US Open in August, will next meet Gabriel Diallo after the Candian beat Jesper De Jong 6-4, 7-6(7).

Defending champion Alexandre Muller maintained his impressive record in Hong Kong with a 7-5, 6-4 victory against Miomir Kecmanovic. The Frenchman won his maiden ATP Tour title at the tournament in 2025 and will play Marcos Giron in the second round. The American cruised past Laslo Djere 6-2, 6-0.

Fifth seed Lorenzo Sonego and Argentine Tomas Martin Etcheverry also advanced. Sonego beat #NextGenATP Japanese star Rei Sakamoto 6-2, 7-6(4), while Etcheverry downed Valentin Royer 6-4 7-5. Etcheverry will next face top seed and the No. 7 player in the PIF ATP Rankings Lorenzo Musetti.

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De Minaur at the double! Australia battles past Czechia to reach United Cup QFs

Alex de Minaur once again carried the weight of the green and gold with distinction on Tuesday night at the United Cup in Sydney, where he pulled double duty to send Australia past Czechia into the quarter-finals.

After Barbora Krejcikova dispatched Maya Joint in straight sets, Australia faced an uphill battle to qualify on home soil. But the 26-year-old De Minaur fed off a lively Ken Rosewall Arena atmosphere to defeat Jakub Mensik 6-4, 6-1 before partnering Storm Hunter to overcome Miriam Skoch and Dalibor Svrcina 6-2, 6-3, sealing a 2-1 victory to top Group D.

With Krejcikova’s triumph, Czechia also advanced to the quarter-finals as the best runner-up in Sydney.

“The atmosphere was unbelievable. Saturday night was incredible and tonight you delivered again,” Hunter said on court. “Demon brings energy, he’s so clutch under pressure. So I felt really comfortable and confident with him by my side.”

Mensik produced moments of flair early in the second set against De Minaur, highlighted by an audacious front-facing tweener volley set up by a booming first serve. But the Australian remained relentless, saving all four break points he faced en route to improving his record to 5-0 against the Czech in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series.

“I didn’t start the year the way I wanted to,” said De Minaur, who fell to Casper Ruud in his first group match. “But something I’ve done really well in my career is bouncing back, so I’m happy I bounced back today.”

Stop that RIGHT now Jakub 😮‍💨 pic.twitter.com/my03sGnbS5

— United Cup (@UnitedCupTennis) January 6, 2026

In the women’s singles, Krejcikova continued her strong start to the 2026 season with a comprehensive 6-4, 6-1 victory over Joint to give Czechia the early lead.

The 30-year-old, WTA No. 63 after missing the first five months of the 2025 season, jumped out to a 4-1 lead against Australian No. 1 Joint, who had missed her country’s opening tie of the competition due to illness. Although Joint narrowed the gap to 4-3, Krejcikova held firm to close out the opening set 6-4 and ran away with the second.

“I’m very happy with my performance,” Krejcikova said. “I’m happy with the way I played from beginning to end. I had great support as well. It was a little up and down in the first set, but I’m happy to come through. I was trying to be aggressive from the start, and it’s nice to have some matches under my belt. I felt a little better on the court today.”

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Dimitrov fit & firing again in Brisbane, Norrie saves 3 MPs

Grigor Dimitrov showed little sign of rust on Tuesday at the Brisbane International presented by ANZ, where he earned victory in just his second match since he suffered a pectoral injury against Jannik Sinner at Wimbledon in July.

The Bulgarian moved past Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta 6-3, 6-2 to advance to the second round at the ATP 250 event in Brisbane, where he is a two-time champion.

Three months after his Wimbledon injury, Dimitrov returned to Tour at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Paris, earning a win against Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in late October. However, his return was brief, with the 34-year-old withdrawing ahead of his second-round match.

“It is so good to see you guys,” Dimitrov said. “Starting the year here is always so special for me. I am just grateful. These months have been very difficult in terms of preparation, mentality. My body had so much to go through, but just to be able to compete again today, it is already a success and of course winning is just an added bonus right now. I am feeling good, I was feeling well on the court, so let’s see how we go.”

Dimitrov will hope he can stay fit and enjoy a productive start to the 2026 season. The former World No. 3 was close to his best throughout the 68-minute match against Carreno Busta and will next meet Raphael Collignon.

There was no winning return for Nick Kyrgios, though, with the Australian losing to Aleksandar Kovacevic. The American earned a 6-3, 6-4 win against the 30-year-old to book his spot in the second round in Brisbane.

Kyrgios was competing in a tour-level singles match for the first time since playing at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Miami last March. However, he had few answers against Kovacevic, who reached ATP Tour finals in Montpellier and Los Cabos in 2025.

Kovacevic will next meet seventh seed Cameron Norrie. The British lefty earned a hard-fought 1-6, 7-6(6), 7-5 comeback win against Frenchman Ugo Humbert. Norrie saved three match points from 3/6 behind in the second-set tie-break, eventually advancing after two hours and 36 minutes. Norrie is level at 2-2 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series against Humbert.

Big-serving Frenchman Mpetshi Perricard upset fourth seed Tommy Paul on the American’s return to Tour, triumphing 7-6(2), 3-6, 7-6(6). Mpetshi Perricard, who advanced to the semi-finals in Brisbane last season, struck 24 aces en route to victory, according to Infosys ATP Stats.

Paul was playing for the first time since he lost in the third round at the US Open in August. The American suffered from a left foot injury in the closing months of 2025.

Brandon Nakashima was also a winner on Tuesday in Brisbane, overcoming second seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 7-6(4), 6-4. Collignon also defeated a seed, moving past fifth seed Denis Shapovalov 6-4, 6-2. In a battle between two Australians, Rinky Hijikata dispatched Adam Walton 6-3, 6-2.

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Fritz faces resurgent Tsitsipas as United Cup QFs begin in Perth

The United States will continue its pursuit of dynasty status at the United Cup on Wednesday in Perth, where they are into the quarter-finals for the third time in four years.

Two-time champion USA, led by Coco Gauff and Taylor Fritz, face a resurgent Greece at 10 a.m. local time, before Switzerland take on best-placed runners-up Argentina in the second quarter-final at 5 p.m.

Here we go! The Quarterfinalists for Perth have been set 🔒

Day Session: USA v Greece
Night Session: Switzerland v Argentina

Who progresses to Sydney?🤔 pic.twitter.com/UyWPYw66wB

— United Cup (@UnitedCupTennis) January 6, 2026

USA vs. Greece [10 a.m.] Gauff and Fritz topped Group A after twice being pushed to deciding mixed-doubles rubbers, repeatedly leaning on one another under pressure. Against Argentina, Gauff was forced into double duty after Fritz fell in a gruelling two-and-a-half-hour loss to Sebastian Baez, but he responded by saving a match point to defeat Jaume Munar en route to clinching their quarter-final spot.

Sakkari and Tsitsipas, both former World No. 3s who are looking revitalised after challenging 2025 seasons, now pose a stern test. Each went 2-0 in singles in Group E, with Tsitsipas holding a 3-2 Lexus ATP Head2Head advantage over Fritz despite the American winning their past two meetings, including at the 2024 Australian Open. While Fritz has remained a Top 10 staple, Tsitsipas slipped outside the Top 20 for the first time since 2018 last year when he struggled with a back injury and searched for form.

The signs suggest Tsitsipas has begun 2026 recharged, having spoken of his ambition to return to a Grand Slam final and backing it up on court in Perth. Sakkari has also impressed, defeating Naomi Osaka in straight sets before finally overcoming Emma Raducanu on her fifth attempt.

“She really showed incredible tennis today, a lot of improvements she has made to her game,” Tsitsipas said of Sakkari after her win over Raducanu. “The shots are there. She has those shots. How can we utilise those to take them to the maximum? She actually did that with brave tennis and going for the kill.”

Gauff, a two-time major champion, will look to bounce back from her loss to Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, though USA may again rely on her if the tie comes down to mixed doubles, having won both deciding rubbers alongside Christian Harrison.

Switzerland vs. Argentina [5 p.m.] Stan Wawrinka continues to add intrigue to his farewell United Cup campaign, with the 40-year-old already spending six hours on court across two marathon singles matches. He produced a stirring final-set tie-break win over Arthur Rinderknech before falling in another against Flavio Cobolli.

Belinda Bencic has been the Swiss linchpin, winning both of her singles matches and delivering alongside Jakub Paul in a deciding mixed-doubles victory over Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori. She opens against Solana Sierra as Switzerland seek to extend their run against an Argentine team that has already exceeded expectations in Perth.

“We’re living in Belinda’s world again,” Wawrinka said after Switzerland’s tie against Italy. “She’s showing us why we’re here again. In general I’m quite happy with my level. Of course, I would have loved to win it. But they finished the job. We are happy as a team. That is the most important.”

Wawrinka now faces Baez, with the three-time major champion hoping to deliver another eye-catching performance. His endurance has been tested early, but his ability to rise in big moments has remained a hallmark of the first tournament of his final season on Tour.

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Battle of the Sexes 'brought eyes on tennis'

Women’s world number one Aryna Sabalenka defends the ‘Battle of the Sexes’ match against Nick Kyrgios after opening her season with a crushing win in Brisbane.

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Norrie wins and Kyrgios' return ends in defeat

Nick Kyrgios’ first ATP Tour match since March ends in a first-round defeat at the Brisbane International, as Britain’s Cameron Norrie books his place in the second round with a hard-fought win.

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Argentina qualifies for United Cup QFs; Perth knockout matchups set

Argentina has qualified for the United Cup quarter-finals by virtue of being the best-placed runner-up country in Perth.

Argentina finished as runner-up in Group A with a 1-1 tie record and, importantly, a 4-2 match record. No other runner-up country in Perth can finish with four match wins, so Argentina is guaranteed to reach the quarter-finals.

The winner of Group A, the United States, was scheduled to face the best runner-up in Perth. However, since the United States and Argentina met in group play, the United States will take on Greece and Switzerland will play Argentina.

The United States-Greece tie will begin at 10 a.m. local time in Perth Wednesday, with the Switzerland-Argentina matchup scheduled for the night session beginning at 5 p.m.

The best-placed runner-up country in Sydney is still up for grabs.

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