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Excitement builds as Perth prepares for return of world-class tennis | 15 December, 2022 | All News | News and Features | News and Events

Excitement builds as Perth prepares for return of world-class tennis | 15 December, 2022 | All News | News and Features | News and Events

Greece’s top-10 stars Stefanos Tsitsipas and Maria Sakkari headline an impressive line-up at the inaugural United Cup in Perth this summer.

Perth, Australia, 15 December 2022 | Leigh Rogers

The countdown is on to the inaugural United Cup, with Perth’s RAC Arena hosting a week of thrilling world-class tennis from 29 December to 4 January as part of the event’s group stage.

The United Cup is an exciting mixed team event that opens the 2023 tennis season in Australia.

It marks the return of top-level professional tennis to Western Australia for the first time in three years. And to celebrate, the United Cup is serving up free day session tickets in Perth for kids 14 and under.

> BUY NOW: United Cup – Perth tickets

If that is not enough to inspire local tennis fans to come along, here are many more reasons why the United Cup in Perth is the place to be this summer:

The No.1 seeds are in Perth
The tournament’s top seeds, Greece, are among six nations scheduled to compete at RAC Arena. They’ll be joined by Belgium and Bulgaria in Group A. Sixth seeds France landed in Group F alongside Argentina and Croatia.

World No.4 Caroline Garcia will represent France at the United Cup in Perth. Picture: Getty Images

World No.4 Caroline Garcia will represent France at the United Cup in Perth. Picture: Getty Images

An incredible line-up
Perth will welcome four top-10 ranked players – the most of any city in the United Cup’s group stage.
World No.4 Stefanos Tsitsipas and world No.6 Maria Sakkari headline Greece’s team, while world No.4 Caroline Garcia spearheads the French line-up. Belgium’s Elise Mertens is currently ranked world No.5 in doubles and is a former world No.1.
Former world No.3 Grigor Dimitrov is also heading west.

A new-look mixed team event
This is the first time Perth has hosted a mixed team event where players are competing for valuable ranking points. Players can earn up to 500 points each during the United Cup.

Playing captains aplenty
Perth is the only city hosting a group featuring three playing captains. Petros Tsitsipas, the younger brother of world No.4 Stefanos, is the playing captain for Greece in Group A. Kirsten Flipkens, a US Open 2022 mixed doubles finalist, is Belgium’s captain, while former Australian Open semifinalist Grigor Dimitrov is leading Bulgaria.

There are four playing captains in total in Perth, with Edouard Roger-Vasselin in charge of the French team. The 39-year-old Roger-Vasselin is a Grand Slam doubles champion who has been ranked as high as world No.6 in doubles. He was a…

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