Sakkari, Tsitsipas to Face Serena and Federer
The draw for the 2019 Hopman Cup was made. After a 17-year absence, Greece will return and was drawn into Group B with USA, Switzerland, and Great Britain.
Greece’s previous and only Hopman Cup participation came in 2002, when Eleni Daniilidou and Vasilis Mazarakis fell 2-1 to Italy in a qualifying play-off. Now, for the 31st and likely last edition of the Hopman Cup, Greece returns with Maria Sakkari and Stefanos Tsitsipas, who were announced back on August 15.
The draw was made yesterday and Greece will play in Group B, along with USA (Serena Williams and Frances Tiafoe), defending champions Switzerland (Belinda Bencic and Roger Federer), and Great Britain (Katie Boulter and Cameron Norrie). Tsitsipas, the current world number 15, leads the head-to-head 1-0 over Frances Tiafoe of the United States. Other than that, Tsitsipas and Sakkari have never played against any of the other players in Group B.
The tournament will be played in Perth at the Perth Arena on hardcourts. Greece will open group play on December 29 against Great Britain. The Greeks will then face USA on December 31, before concluding group play against Switzerland on January 3.
The winner of Group B will advance to the final, to be played on January 5, against the winner of Group A. It should be noted that Group A consists of the hosts Australia, defending finalists Germany, France, and Spain. With the exception of Great Britain and Greece, all six of the other countries have won the Hopman Cup at least twice before. USA has the most titles with six, but have not been able to win one since 2011.
by Andrew Stamas
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