After a profitable season in 2024, Andy Schooler is back to preview the opening event of the 2025 campaign – the United Cup team event.
Tennis betting tips: United Cup
3pts USA to win the United Cup at 3/1 (Sky Bet, Betfred, betway)
1pt e.w. Germany to win the United Cup at 14/1 (Sky Bet)
0.5pt e.w. Australia to win the United Cup at 33/1 (General)
United Cup
- Sydney & Perth, Australia (outdoor hard)
It’s almost time.
The 2025 tennis season gets under way on Thursday (December 27) in Australia with the United Cup team event.
While plenty of prize money and ranking points are on offer, this is essentially a warm-up for the Australian Open, which begins on January 12, but with such a short period between the season’s start and the first big tournament of the year, you can be sure players will be looking to hit the ground running.
The format remains the same as 12 months ago – six groups of three split across two cities (Perth and Sydney) with the six group winners progressing to the quarter-finals, along with the best runner-up from each venue.
Each tie is made up of three rubbers – a men’s and women’s singles (the order will vary from tie-to-tie) and a potentially-decisive mixed doubles.
Teams with two strong singles players are at a distinct advantage, but others with a good doubles pairing will still be confident.
Having one star and little else makes things hard but if that player can contest singles and doubles – think Jasmine Paolini, of Italy – then it is possible for a player to carry their team almost single-handedly.
However, it should be remembered that it’s week one of a long campaign – how many players will really want to play five singles and five doubles across the next 10 days?
They play on outdoor hardcourts, although the Ken Rosewall Arena in Sydney does have a canopy roof, giving it something of an indoor feel. The semis and final will be staged on that court with the rest of tournament split equally across the two cities.
The two semi-finalists who emerge from Perth will get two days off to travel to Sydney and get used to the different conditions there.
Hopefully that’s the essentials dealt with. Now let’s look at the 18 teams…
GROUP A (Perth)
USA (3/1)
Men – Taylor Fritz (4), Denis Kudla (267), Robert Galloway (34*)
Women – Coco Gauff (3), Danielle Collins (11), Desirae Krawczyk (11*)
The top seeds, winners in 2023, look strong. They are the only team with a top-10 player in both men’s and women’s singles and with Fritz and Gauff having ended last season in fine fettle, you’d think they should win most matches this week. Win them all and USA will be champions. Both Gauff and Krawczyk are excellent doubles players with Galloway also a specialist, while if Gauff fancies a break, Collins is very handy replacement in singles. Worthy favourites.
Canada (20/1)
Men – Felix Auger-Aliassime (29), Liam Draxl (247), Benjamin Sigouin (201*)
Women – Leylah Fernandez (31), Stacey Fung (253), Ariana Arsenault (146*)
Auger-Aliassime and Fernandez are both good singles players and capable of springing an upset. However, there looks little in support and it could well be they also have to pair up in doubles too. In another group, Canada could go well but with the USA in this pool, Canada will have to be exceptional to get out of it.
Croatia (28/1)
Men – Borna Coric (90), Luka Mikrut (380), Ivan Dodig (26*)
Women – Donna Vekic (19), Lucija Ciric Bagaric (216), Petra Marchinko (615*)
Croatia were the last team into this competition and they got in largely due to Vekic’s ranking. She’ll have to play well, while Coric will likely need to rediscover the form that brought him a Masters 1000 title in 2022. Given what’s he’s produced more recently, that seems unlikely. It’s not impossible, but it’s hard to see Croatia making much of an impact.
GROUP B (Sydney)
Poland (7/2)
Men – Hubert Hurkacz (16), Kamil Majchrzak (120), Jan Zielinski (25*)
Women – Iga Swiatek (2), Maja Chwalinska (128), Alicja Rosolska (417*)
The second seeds are rated highly by the bookies and you can see why. Swiatek is the highest-ranked female in the tournament and reunites with last year’s partner, Hurkacz. The duo led the Poles to the final – and they held two championship points against Germany before losing. The worry would be how Hurkacz is physically. His second half of 2024 was dented pretty badly by injury but he has spent the off-season working with Ivan Lendl and Nicolas Massu which looks a good move. Still, he needs to hit the ground running with both group opponents in the top 25 – one ranked higher, one lower. The good news is, this isn’t the strongest group.
Czechia (16/1)
Men – Tomas Machac (25), Marek Gengel (257), Patrik Rikl (75*)
Women – Karolina Muchova (22), Gabriela Knutson (234), Vendula Valdmannova (848)
Both singles players are in top 25 so the Czechs clearly have a chance. But rising star Machac has to go up against two heavyweights which leaves little room for error and Muchova’s body can break down at any moment, it seems. With little in the way of a doubles partnership, the Czechs look up against it.
Norway (40/1)
Men – Casper Ruud (6), Viktor Durasovic (417)
Women – Malene Helgo (404), Ulrikke Elkeri (38*)
As was the case 12 months ago, Ruud is doing most of the heavy lifting in this team, although at least he has a decent doubles partner this year with Elkeri a member of the world’s top 50 in that format. Still, with their women’s singles player not even ranked in the top 400, Ruud will need to keep winning in singles and doubles for Norway to progress and that seems unlikely.
GROUP C (Perth)
Greece (8/1)
Men – Stefanos Tsitsipas (11), Stefanos Sakellaridis (489), Petros Tsitsipas (105*)
Women – Maria Sakkari (32), Despina Papamichail (281), Valentini Grammatikopoulou (167*)
Tsitsipas and Sakkari are both players who have seen better days but they are far from without hope. The pair will have looked to reset over the off-season, especially Sakkari, who hasn’t played since the US Open due to a shoulder injury. She did play well at this event last season, winning all three singles, but expecting a repeat given her long lay-off seems foolhardy. Without her contributing points, Greece will come unstuck at some stage, although getting out of a weak group isn’t beyond them.
Kazakhstan (12/1)
Men – Alexander Shevchenko (78), Dmitry Popko (176), Aleksandr Nedovyesov (59*)
Women – Elena Rybakina (6), Zhibek Kulambayeva (150*)
Rybakina has often delivered in Australia – she’s reached four finals Down Under, including at the Australian Open in 2023. But she needs help. Shevchenko is no mug but he’s one of the weaker singles players at this event and the Kazakhs don’t look to have much in terms of a doubles set-up.
Spain (40/1)
Men – Pablo Carreno Busta (196), Carlos Taberner (195), Sergio Martos Gornes (113*)
Women – Jessica Bouzas Maneiro (54), Marina Bassols Ribera (213), Yvonne Cavalle-Reimers (89*)
Carreno Busta will use his protected ranking to play singles but he’ll have to quickly get up to speed if Spain are to stand a chance of progressing. With PCB’s injury issues having seen his ranking plummet, the Spanish are without a top-50 player of any sort and that leaves them needing a lot of upsets. One suspects Spain will be left wondering what might have been had their best players opted to compete.
GROUP D (Sydney)
Italy (14/1)
Men – Flavio Cobolli (32), Matteo Gigante (141), Andrea Vavassori (10*)
Women – Jasmine Paolini (4 & 8*), Sara Errani (105 & 9*), Angelica Moratelli (74*)
Paolini evolved into one of the world’s best players last season and ended it by leading Italy to glory in the women-only Billie Jean King Cup. She has a good chance to repeat the trick here. She’s an excellent doubles player too so could team up with top-10 star Vavassori. But even if she decides that’s too much work in week one of the season, Errani is also top 10 in doubles. With Cobolli another notable improver in 2024, Italy have good chances of points in every rubber.
France (40/1)
Men – Ugo Humbert (14), Corentin Moutet (70), Edouard Roger-Vasselin (40*)
Women – Chloe Paquet (123), Leolia Jeanjean (149), Elixane Lechemia (105*)
Humbert bounced back in 2024 and he’s a very good player in quick conditions, which is what we tend to get in Australia. However, even before the loss of Diane Parry to injury, the French looked weak on women’s side and that looks likely to be their downfall. Their doubles also doesn’t look as strong as many.
Switzerland (33/1)
Men – Dominic Stricker (300), Remy Bertola (282), Jakub Paul (138*)
Women – Belinda Bencic (487), Celine Naef (153), Conny Perrin (157*)
If there’s a team who could surprise at big odds, then it’s the Swiss. Bencic is a former Olympic champion and top-10 star who is on the comeback trail after giving birth and her return so far has gone very well. Stricker is a much better player than his ranking suggests and he’s one who tends to rise to the occasion when given a big stage on which to perform. It remains unlikely they will get out of this group, but it’s not beyond the realms of possibility.
GROUP E (Perth)
China (33/1)
Men – Zhang Zhizhen (45 & 51*), Bai Yan (255), Sun Fajing (207*)
Women – Gao Zinyu (175), Zhang Shuai (27*)
The withdrawal of Qinwen Zheng in the days leading up to this event is a huge blow to China’s chances. Virtually everything now rests on the shoulders of Zhang Zhizhen, who looks like he now needs victories in both singles and doubles if China are to win ties. Whether he plans on even playing both formats is open to question though so China certainly look worth taking on.
Germany (14/1)
Men – Alexander Zverev (2), Daniel Masur (254), Tim Puetz (9*)
Women – Laura Siegemund (80 & 21*), Lena Papadakis (125*), Vivian Heisen (1641*)
The defending champions are back looking to retain but things have changed a little in their team. Zverev - the highest-ranked male here - played all 10 rubbers last season, winning eight, but doubles specialist Puetz will surely want some matchplay this time. On the women’s side, Siegemund only played doubles 12 months ago but this time looks set to take on dual duty. She could form a good team with Puetz – or Zverev – but it looks a tough schedule for the 36-year-old. Still have a good chance but may come up a little short.
Brazil (22/1)
Men – Thiago Monteiro (109), Gustavo Heide (172), Rafael Matos (36*)
Women – Beatriz Haddad Maia (17), Carolina Alves (301), Luisa Stefani (28*)
Monteiro is one the lowest-ranked men’s singles players at the UnitedCup where he’s off his favoured clay. That said, he is capable on these faster surfaces, especially when he gets his lefty serve working well. He will need to support Haddad Maia, who is the class act in this group and should post wins. If Matos and Stefani can form a good team, Brazil may cause an upset or two, although going all the way looks beyond them.
GROUP F (Sydney)
Great Britain (40/1)
Men – Billy Harris (125), Jan Choinski (173), Charles Broom (156*)
Women – Katie Boulter (24), Lily Miyazaki (182), Olivia Nicholls (39*)
The loss of Jack Draper and Joe Salisbury to the team has left Boulter carrying Great Britain. She really improved in 2024 and should win both matches in this group. However, she’ll need support and it’s hard to see where another point is coming from. Billy Harris looks out of his depth, standing in for Draper, while the doubles options are limited.
Australia (33/1)
Men – Alex de Minaur (9), Omar Jasika (179), Matt Ebden (13*)
Women – Olivia Gadecki (97), Destanee Aiava (195), Ellen Perez (13*)
Australia’s route to glory is clear – De Minaur wins in men’s singles and doubles specialists Ebden and Perez team up for the second point. De Minaur has often performed at his best on home soil and that home-crowd support should carry the Aussies through this group. For it to carry them all the way, there is little room for error though.
Argentina (50/1)
Men – Tomas Martin Etcheverry (39), Thiago Agustin Tirante (117), Guido Andreozzi (55*)
Women – Nadia Podoroska (100), Maria Lourdes Carle (94 & 242*)
With Podoroska only playing on protected ranking, much rests on the shoulders of Etcheverry – probably too much. Even if he is able to win and win, you have to wonder where the second point is coming from. Podoroska prefers the clay, while the doubles team looks weak. A group exit beckons.
VERDICT
Before reaching a decision on who to back, we need to consider the knockout stage draw bracket, which has already been set as follows:
Winner C v Winner E
Winner B v Sydney RU
Winner A v Perth RU
Winner D v Winner F
Using their outright odds, the bookies suggest this will be the quarter-final line-up:
Greece v Germany
Poland v RU
USA v RU
Italy v Australia
For me, the most likely winners look USA and I’m a little surprised they are as big as 3/1.
Fritz and Gauff are both top-four singles players with only Germany’s Zverev and Poland’s Swiatek ranked higher. The US cannot meet either side until the final.
They also have two doubles specialists available to them if required, although Gauff is an excellent doubles player herself and could well play both formats.
Sadly, the two sides I like most at big prices – Italy and AUSTRALIA – reside in the same side of the draw as the Americans.
Like Gauff, Italy’s Paolini is a fine player in singles and doubles, as she showed when helping her country win the Billie Jean King Cup in November. And a good week for Cobolli would make them very strong.
The host nation are weak in women’s singles which will likely prove their undoing at some stage but De Minaur is top 10 in singles – and notably holds a 3-2 winning record over potential semi-final foe Fritz on outdoor hard. Meanwhile, Ebden and Perez should be a formidable doubles team on home soil.
Both teams look overpriced but I can’t back both so will take a small punt on the Aussies at 33s.
On the other side of the draw, Poland may well return to the final but I’m less convinced than when backing them at a bigger price last season due to Hurkacz’s injury issues – he subsequently slipped out of form, ending 2024 looking a shadow of the player who started the campaign so well at last season’s United Cup. If he’s back to his best, Poland will be hard to beat but it’s hard to know at this point so I’m leaving them alone.
Instead, let’s back GERMANY to retain the title.
Zverev is the highest-ranked man in the event and finished the 2024 season in fine fettle. He also shone at this tournament 12 months ago.
Siegemund having to play singles and doubles looks a concern but I feel that is built into the price of 14/1 – they look the value on their side of the draw.
Posted at 1100 GMT on 26/12/24
Safer gambling
We are committed in our support of safer gambling. Recommended bets are advised to over-18s and we strongly encourage readers to wager only what they can afford to lose.
If you are concerned about your gambling, please call the National Gambling Helpline / GamCare on 0808 8020 133.
Further support and information can be found at begambleaware.org and gamblingtherapy.org.
