International tennis is another team tournament richer. From the 2023 season, the United Cup will be organized in Australia, a tournament for men and women in which eighteen countries participate.
The United Cup is an initiative of the tennis associations ATP, WTA and the Australian Tennis Federation and seems to respond to the growing popularity of team events in global tennis.
Team events
The Davis Cup (men) and Billie Jean King Cup (women, the former Fed Cup) have been played for many years, but the Laver Cup (Europe against the rest of the world) has now also become a permanent fixture on the tennis calendar.
In addition, the All American Cup will be played for the first time on November 11, 12 and 13 in San Antonio (Texas). This is a three-day meeting, modeled on the Laver Cup, between the best American tennis players from the East and West Coasts.
The United Cup replaces the ATP Cup on the tennis calendar, the men’s country tournament that has been organized in Australia for the past three years. An important aspect for the participants: the players can earn points for the world ranking in this tournament.
Hopman Cup
The United Cup shows similarities with the Hopman Cup. That tournament for men and women was organized in Perth between 1989 and 2019, but did not count towards the world ranking. Switzerland was the last winner with Roger Federer and Belinda Bencic.
That last edition also provided a nice get-together in the mixed doubles between the United States with Serena Williams and Switzerland with Federer.
The United Cup starts with six groups of three countries. The three playing locations, Brisbane, Perth and Sydney, each house two groups. The group winners will then play a final match against each other for each location.
The three remaining countries and the best-losing country of the three final matches then qualify for the semi-finals, which continue in a knockout system in Sydney (January 6-8).
The United Cup will be played from Thursday, December 29 to Sunday, January 8, in preparation for the Australian Open. The first Grand Slam tournament of the year kicks off in Melbourne on January 16.
