Sakkari, Greece advance to United Cup quarterfinals for first time since 2024

PERTH, Australia -- The United Cup has its next quarterfinalist, and for the third time in the tournament’s four editions, Greece is heading to the knockout round. Stefanos Tsitsipas and Maria Sakkari delivered three-set singles victories to clinch a 2-1 Group E win over Great Britain.

Olivia Nicholls and Neal Skupski did salvage a point for Great Britain in the mixed doubles, defeating Despina Papamichail and Stefanos Sakellaridis 6-2, 3-6, 10-4 in the final match of the tie.

Notably, Sakkari’s 6-4, 3-6, 6-1 win Monday over Emma Raducanu, was her first-career victory against the Briton on the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz. Sakkari is now 2-0 in singles to start the season, defeating Naomi Osaka on Jan. 2 in the win over Japan.

"We tweaked a little bit obviously the tactic," Sakkari, the World No. 52 said to reporters. "I feel like it was more about she does the same thing against me like any other time. I feel like it was more about me being brave in those big moments.

"In that second set I feel like I took my foot off the gas a little bit. I was too careful."

Raducanu struck first, leading 2-0, with a break of Sakkari’s serve in the opening game and an immediate hold of Serve as Sakkari often hit some forehands long. But the Greek quickly regrouped, winning the next six of seven games to win the first set 6-3, highlighted by an incredible backhand, half-volley pass in the penultimate game that ignited the Greek bench.

Raducanu, who climbed from outside the top 60 to No. 29 in 2025, made her season debut against Sakkari after she was unable to compete in the tie versus Japan Sunday. Katie Swan, who hadn’t competed in a tour-level main-draw match since Wimbledon 2023, put up a valiant effort for Great Britain against four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka, falling 6-7 (4), 1-6, though the Britons won the tie.

Raducanu found her groove in the second set. After Sakkari broke the 2021 US Open champion for a 2-1 advantage, Raducanu returned the favor with a break, part of a run where she won five of the last six games to finish the second set.

Sakkari scored the breakthrough moment in the fourth game of the third set with a break of Raducanu, who had saved 8-of-11 break point opportunities on the evening, and followed by a quick service game, Sakkari led 4-1.

That momentum carried its way through the match, as Sakkari finished the third set handily.

"It doesn't get any better," Sakkari said of her start on court. "Especially after the season I had last year, I came into this tournament with low expectations after a great preseason, but at the same time, I just felt 'Let's see what I can do. Let's see how I can deliver the things that I worked on."

Tsitsipas set Sakkari up for success, following his 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (4) win over Great Britain’s Billy Harris in the opening match of the tie.

In a hard-fought battle, Tsitsipas rallied after a slow start to give Greece a 1-0 lead. The 27-year-old struggled to find his range on his backhand throughout the 2-hour, 15-minute matchup, but inflicted enough damage on his forehand and held his nerve in the third-set tiebreak to triumph.

"Getting tough matches in makes you a better player, improves your IQ as a player," Tsitsipas said to reporters. "You get to try things. You get to experiment with a few things you're not entirely sure about when you're on the court. In my case, the more I get to spend time on the court, the more I get to figure out certain things.

"Matches always help. I'm a matches person. I've always been. It feeds my creativity. It feeds my zone of understanding that should be done more and maybe we should improve this. It always works as feedback."

Tsitsipas helped Greece beat Japan in its opening tie with a win against Shintaro Mochizuki and now holds an 8-2 singles record at the mixed-team event. It is the first time the No. 36 player in the PIF ATP Rankings has earned consecutive wins since Barcelona last April, when he reached the quarterfinals.