Swiatek, Hurkacz lead Poland past Germany at United Cup

Iga Swiatek and Hubert Hurkacz each posted crucial singles victories Monday as Poland swept Germany in Group F play at the United Cup in Sydney.

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After Hurkacz provided the ideal start by upsetting World No. 3 Alexander Zverev 6-3, 6-4 in the opening match, Swiatek rallied from a set and a break down to defeat Eva Lys in three sets and clinch the win for Poland. Katarzyna Kawa and Jan Zielinski defeated Laura Siegemund and Alexander Zverev a perfect 3-0 evening at Ken Rosewall Arena.

Lys, who had never won more than two games in any of the previous six sets she had played against Swiatek on the WTA Tour driven by Mercedes-Benz, came out aggressively and took the opening set 6-3. The German, coming off a win over Suzan Lamens in her first United Cup match, looked poised for a major upset after breaking for a 3-1 lead in the second set.

Swiatek responded by winning five straight games to take the second set 6-3, then broke again to move ahead 3-1 in the decider. Lys briefly halted the surge by breaking back to level the set at 3-3, but Swiatek steadied and secured the decisive break in the 10th game to close out a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory in just under two-and-a-half hours.

Poland improved to 1-0 in Group F with the win, while Germany dropped to 1-1.

The second-serve performance proved decisive. Swiatek won 52% of her second-serve points, compared to 39% for Lys, while the two players were nearly even on first-serve points won, with Swiatek at 54% and Lys at 53%.

The win improved Swiatek’s United Cup record to 12-2 and marked her 31st victory in her past 32 matches against players ranked outside the top 40.

Earlier in the day, Hurkacz made a statement return to action after missing nearly seven months due to a right knee injury for which he underwent arthroscopic surgery on 2 July.

Hurkacz had not played a match since June in ’s-Hertogenbosch, leading to a fall to No. 83 in the PIF ATP Rankings. But the former World No. 6 played well above his ranking inside Ken Rosewall Arena, facing just one break point in his one-hour, 23-minute victory.

"It's been a while since I've been competing. Seven months I've been going through difficult times with the team and it was very challenging," Hurkacz said.

"They were all supporting me, they were all behind me. We went through definitely a long period of time not competing and not knowing when we [would] be able to be back on court again. I was just trying to cherish and enjoy every moment here on the court today."

The two-time Nitto ATP Finals competitor held up well under pressure against Zverev, beautifully redirecting a backhand up the line to secure the critical break at 3-3 in the second set. Hurkacz faced just one break point in the match according to Infosys ATP Stats, hitting 21 aces to allow his opponent few opportunities to work his way into points.

"I was serving quite well. I was finding nice spots, so that's definitely a nice feeling to really have good rhythm on the serve," Hurkacz said. "Just so pleased with the performance and just also so much fun to see the fans again."