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United Cup Group matches at the Ken Rosewall Arena in Sydney, got under way on Saturday with both The Netherlands and Germany posting wins in their first ties of the international mixed team event.
I think we broke Casper three times and waited for the final last game of Ulrikke to break her… Very proud of the team. It’s a good start for us to end 2023 with a win Wesley Koolhoff
Both nations got through with 2-1 scorelines at the expense of Norway and Italy in their respective Group F and Group D ties.
First up was the Dutch versus Norwegian clash which Casper Ruud level the tie at 1-1 by defeating Tallon Griekspoor 6-3 6-4 after Arantxa Rus had given The Netherlands the lead with her 7-6(4) 6-1 victory over Malene Helgo.
It was left to the doubles rubber to decide the tie and the Dutch playing captain Wesley Koolhoff with partner Demi Schuurs revived their countries’ hopes of progressing from the group stages by narrowly clinching the deciding point from Ruud and Ulrikke Eikeri 7-6)5) 7-5.
“I think mixed doubles here obviously is the key to either win the tie or to maybe get a 3-love out of it or to save the team a bit,” Koolhof said after their triumph. “I think it was a very good level. I think we broke Casper three times and waited for the final last game of Ulrikke to break her… Very proud of the team. It’s a good start for us to end 2023 with a win.”
Norway had opportunities to force a third set but were unable to break their opponents’ concentration and rhythm.
“I think it was kind of a roller coaster, this mixed,” Schuurs said reflecting on the tightness of the match. “They were up. We came back. We had chances. We didn’t take the chances. At the end it was just a few little points that made a difference, but I think on the important moments we were very sharp.”
The next Group F match is scheduled for Monday when Norway will attempt to get a positive result against Croatia.
Angelique Kerber and Alexander Zverev get the German campaign going
(Photo by Jason McCawley/Getty Images)
In the evening match on Saturday, Germany squeezed past Italy thanks to a strong performance from Alexander Zverev who not only kept the Germans in contention by winning his singles, but then partnered Angelique Kerber to win the crucial mixed doubles to get their campaign off to a good start.
In the singles against Lorenzo Musetti, Zverev didn’t face a break point but he still had his hands full and had to battle over two hours and 52 minutes before securing his 6-7(5) 6-3 6-4 victory which levelled the tie after Kerber, playing her first competitive match since Wimbledon 2022 (during which time she gave birth to her daughter Liana), dropped her singles 6-4 7-5 to Jasmine Paolini after one hour and 48-minutes.
So, like the first tie, it was the mixed doubles result which decided the outcome and having swung the tie Germany’s way with his singles win, Zverev maintained the momentum with his partner to sweep past the Italian combo of Sonego and Angelica Moratelli 6-3 6-0.
“The first set was one of the best sets I have seen him play, but I just looked for ways to get back into the match,” Zverev said on his singles win. “For the first match of the season I can’t complain.”
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