Coco Gauff yesterday roared past Iga Swiatek to inspire the US before Taylor Fritz sealed the United Cup title with victory over Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz in Sydney.
Gauff opened with a statement 6-4, 6-4 win over Swiatek in 1 hour, 51 minutes of hard-hitting tennis to fire a warning shot ahead of the Australian Open.
Big-serving Fritz then battled through against Hubert Hurkacz 6-4, 5-7, 7-6 (7/4) to spark wild celebrations as the Americans won the mixed-teams cup for the second time in three years after winning the inaugural event in 2023. For Poland it meant falling at the final hurdle again after losing to Germany 12 months ago.
Photo: EPA-EFE
Gauff set the ball rolling with a second victory in a row over Swiatek after beating the former world No. 1 at the WTA Finals in Riyadh on her way to the title.
Gauff had won all six of her previous singles and doubles matches last week and continued her streak when Swiatek double-faulted on match point at 4-5, 30-40 in the second set.
“I think I have the belief that I am one of the best players in the world, and when I play good tennis, it’s hard for me to be beaten,” said Gauff, who won the award as player of the tournament.
Photo: Reuters
The 20-year-old would go into the first Grand Slam of the year on Sunday unbeaten in singles since losing to world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the Wuhan Open semi-finals in October last year, and brimming with confidence.
“Today I think I played great tennis, and I’m happy to get a point,” she said. “It was tough today. I’m not gonna lie.”
Gauff’s victory left the US one win away from lifting the title for the second time, and Fritz delivered after edging a third-set tiebreak to seal a tense encounter.
“It’s been a great week,” Fritz said.
“They’re an incredibly tough team and the margins are very small,” he added after a serve-dominated match that featured 30 aces and just three break points. “I feel like it could have always gone either way. Just want to say thanks to my whole team.”
Earlier, Swiatek took a medical time-out at 5-4 down in the second set to have strapping put on her niggling left thigh, which bothered her all week in Sydney.
After losing to Gauff, Swiatek left the court in tears, walking gingerly, but returned laughing and joking during the trophy presentations.
Red-hot Gauff, who did not drop a set in five singles matches, goes into the Australian Open as world No. 3. She enjoyed United Cup singles wins over Leylah Fernandez, Donna Vekic, Zhang Shuai, Karolina Muchova and Swiatek.
Fritz, who is at a career-best world No. 4, dropped his opening United Cup match to Felix Auger-Aliassime, but went on to win four straight.
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Elena Rybakina’s Kazakhstan yesterday dumped defending champions Germany out of the United Cup with world No. 2 Alexander Zverev sidelined by an arm injury barely a week away from the Australian Open. The upset in Perth sent the Kazakhs into the semi-finals of the 18-nation tournament. In Sydney, women’s world No. 2 Iga Swiatek led Poland into the last eight by winning a rematch of her 2023 French Open final against Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic. Britain also progressed to the quarter-finals with Katie Boulter’s dominant 6-2, 6-1 victory over Australia’s Olivia Gadecki enough to guarantee they won their group. The US and
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Five-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek yesterday beat Elena Rybakina in straight sets to take Poland into the final of the mixed-teams United Cup with victory over Kazakhstan. Last year’s runners-up face the US today for the title in Sydney after they beat the Czech Republic in the other semi-final. “This win makes me really proud,” Swiatek said after seeing off Rybakina 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 to give Poland an unassailable 2-0 lead in the tie. It was a statement of intent from the world number two with the first major of the year to start on Jan. 12. “It is perfect preparation for the
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