SUMMARY
- The second edition of the United Cup will kick off the new season.
- The cream of the tennis world will be participating in the marquee event.
The United Cup is set to kick off the new season in style. Fans have much to look forward to, and the players themselves will put their best foot forward. The tournament is a joint venture by the ATP and the WTA and is only in its second year. However, big names like Iga Swiatek, Novak Djokovic, and others will grace the courts in Perth and Sydney.
The inaugural edition was a grand success, and it is set to be even bigger this time around. Players from 18 different countries will be participating in the event, and it will be played over 10 days. Australian ace Alex de Minaur will lead the team at the event, and he will be joined by Ajla Tomjlanovic. Alex was last seen representing his country in the Davis Cup, while Ajla won a WTA 125 event in November.
Poland will field the strongest team, with world No. 1 Swiatek handling the reins. Hubert Hurkacz will join Swiatek in representing Poland, the top-seeded team, at the tournament this year.
Seed | Nation | No. 1 ATP | No. 1 WTA | No. 2 ATP | No. 2 WTA | Doubles ATP | Doubles WTA |
1 | Poland | Hubert Hurkacz | Iga Swiatek | Daniel Michalski | Katarzyna Kawa | Jan Zielinski | Katarzyna Piter |
2 | Greece | Stefanos Tsitsipas | Maria Sakkari | Stefanos Sakellaridis | Despina Papamichail | Petros Tsitsipas | Valentini Grammatikopoulou |
3 | United States | Taylor Fritz | Jessica Pegula | Denis Kudla | Alycia Parks | Rajeev Ram | Desirae Krawczyk |
4 | France | Adrian Mannarino | Caroline Garcia | Antoine Escoffier | Amandine Hesse | Edouard Roger-Vasselin | Elixane Lechemia |
5 | Czech Republic | Jiri Lehecka | Marketa Vondrousova | Vit Kopriva | Sara Bejlek | Petr Nouza | Miriam Kolodziejova |
6 | Croatia | Borna Coric | Donna Vekic | Nino Serdarusic | Petra Marcinko | Ivan Dodig | Tena Lukas |
7 | Canada | Felix Auger-Aliassime | Leylah Fernandez | Alexis Galarneau | Stacey Fung | Adil Shamasdin | — |
8 | Great Britain | Cameron Norrie | Katie Boulter | Dan Evans | Francesca Jones | Neal Skupski | Maia Lumsden |
9 | China | Zhizhen Zhang | Qinwen Zheng | Yunchaokete Bu | Xiaodi You | Fajing Sun | — |
10 | Netherlands | Tallon Griekspoor | Arantxa Rus | Thiemo de Bakker | Arianne Hartono | Wesley Koolhof | Demi Schuurs |
11 | Spain | Alejandro Davidovich Fokina | Sara Sorribes Tormo | Roberto Carballes Baena | Marina Bassols Ribera | David Vega Hernandez | Rosa Vicens Mas |
12 | Italy | Lorenzo Sonego | Jasmine Paolini | Flavio Cobolli | Nuria Brancaccio | Andrea Pellegrino | Angelica Moratelli |
13 | Serbia | Novak Djokovic | Olga Danilovic | Hamad Medjedovic | Natalija Stevanović | Nikola Cacic | Dejana Radanovic |
14 | Norway | Casper Ruud | Malene Helgo | Andreja Petrovic | Ulrikke Eikeri | Nicolai Budkov Kjaer | — |
15 | Australia | Alex de Minaur | Ajla Tomljanovic | John Millman | Storm Hunter | Matthew Ebden | Ellen Perez |
16 | Germany | Alexander Zverev | Angelique Kerber | Maximilian Marterer | Tatjana Maria | Kai Wehnelt | Laura Siegemund |
17 | Brazil | Thiago Seyboth Wild | Beatriz Haddad Maia | Felipe Meligeni Alves | Carolina Meligeni Alves | Marcelo Melo | — |
18 | Chile | Nicolas Jarry | Daniela Seguel | Alejandro Tabilo | Fernanda Labrana | Tomas Barrios Vera | — |
The US won the trophy last year, but not everyone from the winning team will take to the courts this year. Only Jessica Pegula and Taylor Fritz will be returning for a second stint. Stefanos Tsitsipas will team up with Maria Sakkari for Greece. Petros Tsitsipas will also be joining his brother to play for the trophy.
Djokovic is set to make his debut at the tournament this year. Hamad Medjedovic, this year’s Next Gen ATP Finals champion, will play alongside his idol. Last year’s runners-up, Italy, is fielding a different side, with Lorenzo Sonego and Jasmine Paolini leading from the front.
Just a cool 24 Grand Slam trophies, 98 titles and an insane world No.1 record – as ya do 😎
We cannot wait to welcome THE @DjokerNole to #UnitedCup 🍿 pic.twitter.com/3mKw4GXRgs
— United Cup (@UnitedCupTennis) December 22, 2023
Angelique Kerber will be making her comeback at the tournament after an extended maternity leave. Alexander Zverev, Laura Siegemund, and Tatjana Maria will join Kerber in representing Germany. Despite the luggage mishap, Cameron Norrie, Daniel Evans, and Karie Boulter feature on the lineup for Great Britain.
Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal, who will return after a long hiatus in Brisbane, will not be playing at the United Cup this year. Alejandro Davidovic Fokina and Sara Sorribes Tormo will lead instead. In a similar vein as last year, Russia and Belarus have not been allowed to enter the tournament.
Date and Prize money of United Cup 2024
The United Cup is set to raise the curtain on the new season. It is a mixed-gender tournament, only in its second year, but it promises a lot of exciting matchups. Perth and Sydney will play host to the teams as 18 countries battle it out for the top honors.
The tournament will commence on December 29 and go on until January 7. All the matches will be played on the outdoor hardcourts, the same as last year. The format has been slightly altered for this year, with fewer matches per tie. Each tie will have a men’s singles rubber, a women’s singles rubber, and a mixed doubles match.
Getting ready for the big dance 💪 👀 🔥#UnitedCup pic.twitter.com/fjD7iq5p47
— United Cup (@UnitedCupTennis) December 28, 2023
Even though the popularity of this event has soared, the prize money has been reduced. Where the prize pool was $15 million last time, it will be $10 million this time.
This year’s edition of the United Cup promises to be just as exciting as last year’s. With both the men’s and women’s world no. 1’s competing this time, fans have much to look forward to.
How to watch United Cup 2024
BeIN Sports: Middle East & North Africa
Supersport: Central and Southern Africa
9Now & Stan Sport: Australia (Streaming)
Nine: Australia (Free-to-air TV)
Polsat Sport: Poland
Super Tennis: Italy, San Marino, Vatican City
SuperSport: Sub-Saharan Africa
Tennis Channel International: Austria, Germany, Ireland, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom
Tennis Channel: Puerto Rico, USA, US Virgin Islands
TRS & RDS: Canada
Tennis Channel International: India
United Cup YouTube: Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka
Viaplay: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden