Match Preview
De Minaur braces for Hurkacz check in United Cup QF
Crew Australia faces two-time defending finalist Crew Poland on Friday in Sydney
January 08, 2026
TENNIS AUSTRALIA
Alex de Minaur leads Hubert Hurkacz 2-1 of their Lexus ATP Head2Head collection.
By Jerome Coombe
Will Alex de Minaur be the subsequent participant caught in Hubert Hurkacz’s United Cup serving barrage when the pair meets in Sydney on Friday?
The 28-year-old Pole has made an emphatic return from a seven-month harm layoff, firing 21 aces in every of his two-set wins over World No. 3 Alexander Zverev and Tallon Griekspoor. Backed by teammate Iga Swiatek — who has additionally received each of her singles matches — Crew Poland, two-time defending runner-up, has surged into its third straight quarter-final.
Standing of their method is house favorite Crew Australia, spearheaded by De Minaur and 19-year-old rising star Maya Joint. The tie will get underway with the ladies’s singles at 5:30 p.m. native time.
De Minaur can draw confidence from his 2-1 Lexus ATP Head2Head edge over Hurkacz, together with a win of their most up-to-date assembly at Indian Wells final yr. Since then, Hurkacz has undergone knee surgical procedure and is competing because the No. 85 within the PIF ATP Rankings, however his performances in Sydney have underlined why he’s a former High 10 participant.
After reaching the semi-finals of the Nitto ATP Finals in November, De Minaur opened his 2026 marketing campaign with a straight-sets loss to Casper Ruud. He rapidly rebounded towards Czechia, nonetheless, pulling double obligation to propel Australia into the quarter-finals. Hurkacz is effectively conscious of the problem forward.
“Alex has been very profitable up to now years,” Hurkacz mentioned of De Minaur, who’s at a career-high World No. 6. “He is actually fast, strikes across the court docket extremely effectively. It may be a superb problem, particularly with the Aussie crowd. It may be quite a lot of enjoyable, and I am excited for the match.”
Ace machine 😮💨
In fact Hubi will get our @Nexo #serveoftheday!#nexo pic.twitter.com/8tQYNUTm1d
— United Cup (@UnitedCupTennis) January 7, 2026
Swiatek wanted simply 66 minutes to dispatch Joint of their solely earlier assembly in Seoul final September, however the six-time main champion isn’t taking something as a right. Whereas the Australian teenager will get pleasure from robust house assist, Swiatek could have received over a number of native followers together with her glowing evaluation of Sydney following her three-set win towards Eva Lys on Monday.
“I like being right here,” Swiatek mentioned. “I might actually stay right here — I like Sydney. I wasn’t positive, however I feel it’s changing into my favorite metropolis in the entire world. I actually have enjoyable right here.”
If the singles matches are break up, the tie can be determined by a combined doubles rubber.
