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United Cup tournament director Stephen Farrow says the competition will treat Perth to a smorgasbord of world-class tennis.
24-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic is the headline attraction for Perth’s fixtures, which will see players representing their countries in both singles and doubles.
Farrow told Sports Breakfast the event would be “tremendously exciting”.
“We’ve got an absolutely incredible event on our hands in Perth this year,” Farrow said.
“I think it says a lot about the event, the prize money on offer, the ranking points on offer, and also the opportunity for players to play for their country.
“We’ve got the world number one men's player, we’ve also got the world number one women’s player with Iga Świątek and the Polish team, we’ve got a great Australian team, we’ve got the defending champions, the US.”
Crowds for the inaugural staging of the tournament last year were much lower than the Hopman Cup, which was controversially scrapped in 2020.
Farrow said the organisers understood it would take time for fans to warm to a new event and ticket sales for this year’s edition had been better than anticipated.
“There’s such a great history and heritage in this city of international mixed-team tennis events, and that legacy is definitely something we’re looking to build on,” he said.
“We know we’ve got an event here that the players really support and really want to play in because they’re entering, they don’t have to enter, they’re choosing to play this competition.
“The calibre of tennis that we’re going to be bringing to Perth is so high, I’ve got every confidence that the support’s going to come.”
The event is designed to give players high-quality preparation before the Australian Open takes place in the last two weeks of January, with Farrow saying players treated the tournament with a high degree of significance.
“Playing these events and getting to Australia as soon as possible is really important for the players so they can begin to acclimate,” he said.
“That’s why Perth is so popular among the players, because if you’re coming from Europe, as most of the top players are, it’s a great initial entry into Australia.
“It’s a great environment for that preparation for the Australian Open, as well as everything that the event means itself.
The United Cup gets underway in Perth on the 29th of December, with tickets available through Ticketmaster.
IMAGE: Sky Sports