United Cup
\n De Minaur at the double! Australia battles past Czechia to reach United Cup QFs<\/p>\n
Australia top Group D, Czechia also qualify for QFs as best runner-up in Sydney<\/p>\n
January 06, 2026<\/p>\n
TENNIS AUSTRALIA<\/p>\n
Alex de Minaur and Storm Hunter defeat Miriam Skoch and Dalibor Svrcina at the United Cup in Sydney.
\n By ATP\/WTA Staff<\/p>\n
Alex de Minaur<\/a> once again carried the weight of the green and gold with distinction on Tuesday night at the United Cup<\/a> in Sydney, where he pulled double duty to send Australia past Czechia into the quarter-finals.<\/p>\n After Barbora Krejcikova dispatched Maya Joint in straight sets, Australia faced an uphill battle to qualify on home soil. But the 26-year-old De Minaur fed off a lively Ken Rosewall<\/a> Arena atmosphere to defeat Jakub Mensik<\/a> 6-4, 6-1 before partnering Storm Hunter to overcome Miriam Skoch and Dalibor Svrcina<\/a> 6-2, 6-3, sealing a 2-1 victory to top Group D.<\/p>\n With Krejcikova\u2019s triumph, Czechia also advanced to the quarter-finals as the best runner-up in Sydney.<\/p>\n \u201cThe atmosphere was unbelievable. Saturday night was incredible and tonight you delivered again,\u201d Hunter said on court. \u201cDemon brings energy, he\u2019s so clutch under pressure. So I felt really comfortable and confident with him by my side.\u201d<\/p>\n Mensik produced moments of flair early in the second set against De Minaur, highlighted by an audacious front-facing tweener volley set up by a booming first serve. But the Australian remained relentless, saving all four break points he faced en route to improving his record to 5-0 against the Czech in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series.<\/p>\n \u201cI didn\u2019t start the year the way I wanted to,\u201d said De Minaur, who fell to Casper Ruud<\/a> in his first group match. \u201cBut something I\u2019ve done really well in my career is bouncing back, so I\u2019m happy I bounced back today.\u201d<\/p>\n Stop that RIGHT now Jakub \ud83d\ude2e\u200d\ud83d\udca8 pic.twitter.com\/my03sGnbS5<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 United Cup<\/a> (@UnitedCupTennis) January 6, 2026<\/a> <\/p>\n In the women\u2019s singles, Krejcikova continued her strong start to the 2026 season with a comprehensive 6-4, 6-1 victory over Joint to give Czechia the early lead.<\/p>\n The 30-year-old, WTA No. 63 after missing the first five months of the 2025 season, jumped out to a 4-1 lead against Australian No. 1 Joint, who had missed her country\u2019s opening tie of the competition due to illness. Although Joint narrowed the gap to 4-3, Krejcikova held firm to close out the opening set 6-4 and ran away with the second.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m very happy with my performance,\u201d Krejcikova said. \u201cI\u2019m happy with the way I played from beginning to end. I had great support as well. It was a little up and down in the first set, but I\u2019m happy to come through. I was trying to be aggressive from the start, and it\u2019s nice to have some matches under my belt. I felt a little better on the court today.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n