United Cup 2023: Which players and teams will be competing in new Australian tennis tournament?

Kieran Francis

United Cup 2023: Which players and teams will be competing in new Australian tennis tournament? image

The Australian summer of tennis is heating up with the United Cup - a new teams tournament played across Sydney, Brisbane and Perth.

Replacing the ATP Cup in the schedule, nations from around the world - featuring men and women - will compete in a group format across Australia before the finals will be held in Sydney.

The Sporting News explains which players and nations will be playing in the United Cup.

MORE: Ash Barty makes Newcombe Medal history

Which countries and players have been selected for the United Cup?

All 18 nations have been confirmed for the 2023 United Cup. 

The locations, groups and players are outlined below.

Perth

Group A

Greece

Stefanos Tsitsipas Maria Sakkari
Michail Pervolarakis Despina Papamichail
Stefanos Sakellardidis Valentini Grammatikopoulou
Petros Tsitsipas Sapfo Sakellaridi

Belgium

David Goffin Elise Mertens
Zizou Bergs Alison Van Uytvanck
Kimmer Coppejans Magali Kempen
Michael Geerts Kirsten Flipkens

Bulgaria

Grigor Dimitrov Viktoriya Tomova
Dimitar Kuzmanov Isabella Shinikova
Adrian Andreev Gergana Topalova
Alexandar Lazarov -

Group F

France

Arthur Rinderknech Caroline Garcia
Adrian Mannarino Alize Cornet
Manuel Guinard Leolia Jeanjean
Edouard Roger-Vasselin Jessika Ponchet

Croatia

Borna Coric Petra Martic
Borna Gojo Donna Vekic
Matija Pecotic Tara Wurth
- Petra Marcinko

Argentina

Diego Schwartzman Nadia Podoroska
Francisco Cerundolo Maria Carle
Federico Coria Paula Ormaechea
Andres Molteni -

Brisbane

Group B

Poland

Hubert Hurkacz Iga Swiatek
Kamil Majchrzak Magda Linette
Daniel Michalski Weronika Falkowska
Lukasz Kubot Alicja Rosolska

Switzerland

Stan Wawrinka Belinda Bencic
Marc-Andrea Huesler Jil Teichmann
Dominic Stricker Ylena In-Albon
Alexander Ritschard Joanne Zuger

Kazakhstan

Alexander Bublik Yulia Putintseva
Timofey Skatov Zhibek Kulambayeva
Denis Yevseyev Gozal Ainitdinova
Grigoriy Lomaki -

Group E

Italy

Matteo Berrettini Martina Trevisan
Lorenzo Musetti Lucia Bronzetti
Andrea Vavassori Camila Rosatello
Marco Bortolotti Nuria Brancaccio

Brazil

Thiago Monteiro Beatriz Haddad Maia
Felipe Meligeni Alves Laura Pigossi
Matheus Pucinelli de Almeida Carolina Alves
Rafael Matos Luisa Stefani

Norway

Casper Ruud Ulrikke Eikeri
Viktor Durasovic Malene Helgo
Andreja Petrovic Lilly Haseth
- -

Sydney

Group C

USA

Taylor Fritz Jessica Pegula
Frances Tiafoe Madison Keys
Denis Kudla Alycia Parks
Hunter Reese Desirae Krawczyk

Germany

Alexander Zverev Laura Siegemund
Oscar Otte Jule Niemeier
Daniel Altmaier Anna-Lena Friedsam
Fabian Fallert Julia Lohoff

Czech Republic

Jiri Lehecka Petra Kvitova
Tomas Machac Marie Bouzkova
Dalibor Svrcina Jesika Maleckova
- -

Group D

Spain

Rafael Nadal Paula Badosa
Pablo Carreno Busta Nuria Parrizas Diaz
Albert Ramos-Vinolas Jessica Bouzas Maneiro
David Vega Hernandez -

Australia

Nick Kyrgios Ajla Tomljanovic
Alex de Minaur Zoe Hives
Jason Kubler Maddison Inglis
John Peers Sam Stosur

Great Britain

Cameron Norrie Harriet Dart
Dan Evans Katie Swan
Jan Choinski Anna Brogan
Jonny O’Mara Ella McDonald

What is the United Cup?

The United Cup is a new mixed tennis tournament, played in a team competition format. 

In 2023, 18 nations - comprising up to four men and four women - will face off to be crowned inaugural champions.

Countries will be split into six pools of three teams, with semi-finals and a final in Sydney to cap off the event.

Teams will play four singles matches (two men's and two women's) and one mixed doubles match in the round-robin stage.

There is a US$15 million (AU$22 million) prize pool on offer, so is plenty of incentive for players to participate in the warm-up event.

When and where is the United Cup?

Whilst the ATP Cup was held exclusively in Sydney, three cities - Brisbane, Perth and Sydney - will co-host the United Cup in 2023.

The event will take place over 11 days, beginning on Thursday, December 29, 2022 and wrapping up on Sunday, January 8, 2023.

Each city will host two separate groups made up of three countries between December 29 to January 4, before the top four nations compete in Sydney from January 6 to 8.

Those top four nations will be those who win in their respective city, as well as the next-best performing team.

The full tournament schedule can be accessed here.

How are countries selected for the United Cup?

18 countries will feature in the inaugural tournament in 2023, with 12 countries selected from the nations of the top six men's and women's players, according to ATP and WTA rankings.

The other six teams qualify based on combined men's/women's rankings.

How to watch the United Cup

As the rights holders of the 2023 Summer of Tennis - including the Australian Open - Nine will broadcast the United Cup in Australia

Every match will be available on 9Now and via their paid streaming service, Stan Sport.

Selected matches will be televised on Channel 9's primary channel throughout the tournament.

For international viewers, please check your local guides for broadcast details.

What happened to the ATP Cup?

Replacing the Hopman Cup in 2020, the ATP Cup has lasted just three years.

A men's-only tournament, it pitted nations together in a team competition format. 

Team Serbia claimed the inaugural edition, with Team Russia (2021) and Team Canada (2022) the other victors. 

Ultimately, the ATP Cup has been replaced due to the increasing co-operation between the men's and women's tennis tours (the ATP and WTA). 

The $15 million prize pool for the United Cup reflects the backing mixed tournaments are receiving, as tennis prioritises efforts towards equality.

When is the 2023 Australian Open?

Next year's Australian Open will run from Monday, January 16 until Sunday, January 29.

Kieran Francis

Kieran Francis Photo

Kieran Francis is a senior editor at The Sporting News based in Melbourne, Australia. He started at Sportal.com.au before being a part of the transition to Sporting News in 2015. Just prior to the 2018 World Cup, he was appointed chief editor of Goal.com in Australia. He has now returned to The Sporting News where his passions lay in football, AFL, poker and cricket - when he is not on holiday.