The United Cup is underway: what is the new mixed tournament that will open the ATP and WTA tennis season about?

The 2023 tennis season will have a different start, because the men’s and women’s circuits will open the calendar of a new season together in the first edition of the united cupan unprecedented tournament for mixed teams that will be launched on Wednesday evening in our country, with many of the big stars of ATP extension and the WTA –Rafael Nadal and Iga Swiatekin the lead and, of course, the presence of Argentina.

Three venues, eleven days of competition on Australian soil, 18 countries, a prize pool of 15 million dollars and up to 500 world ranking points up for grabs. And a challenge with a special flavor for the blue-and-whites’ debut: it will be this Thursday, from 7 in the morning in our country, against France, just 11 days before the unforgettable World Cup final in Qatar, which Lionel Messi and the company beat out the selects Gallic.

“The United Cup will bring equality to the highest level in sport and marks a huge step forward for tennis. We are thrilled to see the best players compete together, with ranking points on the line, to open the season like never before “. andrea gaudenzipresident of the ATP.

SteveSimonher WTA peer, added: “This exciting event is an important and strategic partnership between the WTA, ATP and Tennis Australia. It will be a unique experience where the final outcome can be decided with women and men competing together.”

The competition differs from the traditional appointments of the professional circuits, from the classification system, through the format, to the method of distribution of points and cash prizes.

Twelve of the participating countries earned a place in the tournament thanks to the ranking of their best singles: six taking into account the ATP rankings –Spain, Germany, Greece, Norway, Great Britain Y Bulgaria– and six more, with the WTA ranking –Poland, United States of America, France, Swiss, Brazil Y Czech Republic-.

Other –Italy, Australia, Argentina, Croatia, Belgium Y kazakhstan– were ranked according to the best combined placing of their no. 1 males and females.

The 18 teams – which will have three or four players per circuit – have been divided into six groups of three. Each host city will host the action of two groups. Perth will receive zones A (Greece, Belgium and Bulgaria) and F (France, Croatia and Argentina). brisbane, B (Poland, Switzerland and Kazakhstan) and E (Italy, Brazil and Norway). Y sydneyC (United States, Germany and the Czech Republic) and D (Spain, Australia and Great Britain).

The first phase series will last two days and will consist of two men’s and two women’s singles -1 against 1 and 2 against 2- and a mixed doubles, which will be played at the end, only in case of a tie after the individual stops.

Those who finish top of each group will advance to the ‘City Finals’, which will take place on Wednesday 4 January. So, for example, that day in Perth, the first team from A will play against the first team from F, which could be the albiceleste team. Three semi-finalists will thus be defined. Fourth will be the team with the best game record among the other three zone winners.

The semi-finals will be played between Friday 6 and Saturday 7 in Sydney, which will also host the final on Sunday 8.

An unusual distribution of prizes

The prize distribution system is similar to that used by the ATP Cup, the tournament which opened the seasons between 2020 and 2022 and which has now given way to this new mixed event.

Players will earn points for each victory in singles – mixed doubles won’t award units -, depending on their rival’s position in the leaderboard and stage of the tournament. Points that, for some, could be important when thinking about the pre-classified list for the Australian Openwhich will be put together with the ranking of 9 January.

A group stage win against an opponent outside the top 250 will award 15, while beating a top 10 player in the same stage will be worth 55. But if the celebration against one of that elite group is in the final, it will give away 180. . The maximum harvest a player could take – if he adds five victories, all against rivals ranked in the top ten in the world – will be 500 points.

The $15 million in prizes will be distributed based on three criteria. The first corresponds to participation rights. All players will get, for the mere fact of participating in the tournament, an amount that will depend on their personal ranking and their “role” within the team.

Grigor DimitrovFor example, he is the 28th in the world and the best ranked in the ATP within the Bulgarian team, for which he will receive 60 thousand dollars. While, Lorenzo Musetto23rd in the standings and second Italian single behind Matthew Berrettini (16), will charge 10 thousand less.

The second criterion has to do with individual victories and makes a similar difference to participation. A group stage win by the #1 player “pays” $38,325; one in No. 2, 25,900 and one in mixed doubles (if played), just 7,200. If the festivities are in the finals, the rewards are 251k, 169,200 and 47,255 respectively.

Although not only the players who will take the field in each series will win a prize. Because with each victory of a team, all the members and the captain will receive a sum of money (it will be the same for all players), which will also depend on the instance being played.

The United Cup “formula” has seduced some of the best tennis players in the world, with a different tournament, with good prizes; the possibility of playing with the colors of one’s own countries and as a team; and the possibility of reaching the first Grand Slam of the season with a good load of matches. And it will also entice fans with the opportunity to see the biggest ATP and WTA stars share the court, which doesn’t happen often. An unforgettable date.

The teams of the United Cup 2023

in perth

Group A:

Greece: Stefanos Tsitsipas, Michail Pervolarakis, Stefanos Sakellaridis, Petros Tsitsipas, Maria Sakkari, Despina Papamichail, Valentini Grammatikopoulou and Sapfo Sakellaridi. Captain: Petros Tsitsipas.

Belgium: David Goffin, Zizou Bergs, Kimmer Coppejans, Michael Geerts, Elise Mertens, Alison van Uytvanck, Malagi Kempen and Kirsten Flipkens. Captain: Kirsten Flipkens.

Bulgaria: Grigor Dimitrov, Dimitar Kuzmanov, Adrian Andreev, Alexandar Lazarov, Viktoriya Tomova, Isabella Shinikova and Gergana Topalova. Captain: Grigor Dimitrov.

Group F:

Argentina: Francisco Cerúndolo, Federico Coria, Tomás Etcheverry, Nadia Podoroska, Lourdes Carlé and Paula Ormaechea. Captain: Gisela Dulko.

France: Arthur Rinderknech, Adrian Mannarino, Manuel Guinard, Edouard Roger-Vasselin, Caroline Garcia, Alize Cornet, Leolia Jeanjean, Jessika Ponchet. Captain: Edouard Roger-Vasselin.

Croatia: Borna Coric, Borna Gojo, Matija Pecotic, Petra Martic, Donna Vekic, Tara Wurth and Petra Marcinko. Captain: Iva Majoli.

in Brisbane

Group B

Poland: Hubert Hurkacz, Daniel Michalski, Kacper Zuk, Lukasz Kubot, Iga Swiatek, Magda Linette, Weronika Falkowska and Alicja Rosolska. Captains: Agnieszka Radwanska and Dawid Celt.

Switzerland: Stan Wawrinka, Marc-Andrea Huesler, Dominic Stricker, Alexander Ritschard, Belinda Bencic, Jil Teichmann, Ylena In-Albon and Joanne Zuger. Captain: Stan Wawrinka.

Kazakhstan: Alexander Bublik, Timofey Skatov, Denis Yevseyev, Grigoriy Lomakin, Yulia Putintseva, Zhibek Kulambayeva and Gozal Ainitdinova. Captain: Alexander Bublik.

Group E:

Italy: Matteo Berrettini, Lorenzo Musetti, Andrea Vavassori, Marco Bortolotti, Martina Trevisan, Lucia Bronzetti and Camila Rosatello. Captain: Vincenzo Santopadre.

Brazil: Thiago Monteiro, Felipe Meligeni Alves, Matheus Pucinelli De Almeida, Rafael Matos, Beatriz Haddad Maia, Laura Pigossi, Carolina Alves, Luisa Stefani. Captain: Rafael Paciaroni.

Norway: Casper Ruud, Viktor Durasovic, Andreja Petrovic, Ulrikke Eikeri, Malene Helgo and Lilly Haseth. Captain: Christian Ruud.

In Sydney:

Group C:

United States: Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe, Denis Kudla, Hunter Reese, Jessica Pegula, Madison Keys, Alycia Parks and Desirae Krawczyk. Captain: David Witt.

Germany: Alexander Zverev, Oscar Otte, Daniel Altmaier, Fabian Fallert, Laura Siegemund, Jule Niemeier, Anna-Lena Friedsam and Julia Lohoff. Captain: Mischa Zverev.

Czech Republic: Jiri Lehecka, Tomas Machac, Dalibor Svrcina, Petra Kvitova, Marie Bouzkova and Jessica Maleckova. Captain: Jiri Vanek.

Group D:

Spain: Rafael Nadal, Pablo Carreño Busta, Albert Ramos Viñolas, David Vega Hernández, Paula Badosa, Nuria Parrizas Díaz and Jessica Bouzas Maneiro. Captain: Marc Lopez.

Australia: Nick Kyrgios, Alex De Minaur, Jason Kubler, John Peers, Alja Tomljanovic, Zoe Hives, Madison Inglis and Samantha Stosur. Captains: Lleyton Hewitt and Stosur

Great Britain: Cameron Norrie, Daniel Evans, Jan Choinski, Jonny O’Mara, Harriet Dart, Katie Swan, Ranah Stoiber and Ella McDonald. Captain: Tim Henman.