The 2024 tennis season will get underway with the United Cup on December 29. The team tournament features the best male and female players from 18 countries competing in a mixed format. Novak Djokovic is set to kickstart his next season by representing Serbia.
The United Cup was first held in 2023 as a premier team event to begin the season with the best ATP and WTA players representing their countries. Serbia did not feature last year since Novak Djokovic made himself unavailable. Qualification depends on the ATP and WTA world rank of the country’s best available singles player.
However, with Djokovic present, Serbia will make their debut in the 2024 United Cup. The World No.1 will lead the squad, accompanied by Next Gen ATP Finals champion Hamad Medjedovic. Serbia’s highest-ranked WTA player, World No.119 Olga Danilovic, will lead the women’s charge alongside No.180 Natalija Stevanovic. Finally, Nikola Cacic and Dejana Radanovic travel as the mixed doubles duo.
Serbia is placed in Group E with China and Czech Republic. The Eastern European nation will start its campaign against the former on December 31. United Cup ties get underway with men’s singles. Hence, Djokovic will take on World No.58 Zhizhen Zhang to start proceedings, followed by women’s singles and mixed doubles.
Updated schedule @UnitedCupTennis pic.twitter.com/Hn8GadITEW
— Michal Samulski (@MichalSamulski) December 25, 2023
Czechia and Serbia will face off on January 2 in a repeat of their 2023 Davis Cup group stage clash. Djokovic featured in doubles back then as his country lost. He will be gunning to avenge the defeat and lead Serbia to a win. The 24-time Grand Slam champion will face World No.31 Jiri Lehecka.
Since he is not scheduled to feature in any build-up events to the 2024 Australian Open, Djokovic will hope to give his best at the United Cup before heading into the first Slam of the season.
2024 United Cup format changed as Novak Djokovic and Serbia mark debut
The United Cup is a joint venture between the ATP and the WTA that kicks off the season for both tours. It replaced the ATP Cup on the calendar, becoming the only mixed-team event with ranking points on offer. The United States, led by Taylor Fritz and Jessica Pegula, won the inaugural trophy.
The format has since been changed. Last year, each tie consisted of four singles matches (two men’s and women’s) and one mixed doubles. This year, it is whittled down to two singles clashes, one each for men and women, and one mixed doubles.
18 teams are divided into six groups of three each. Groups A, C, and E, will play their round-robin games in Perth. Groups B, D, and F, meanwhile, will battle it out in Sydney. Both cities will host two quarter-finals each but the latter gets both semi-finals and the summit clash.
Other stars in the field include Casper Ruud, Alexander Zverev, Iga Swiatek, and Maria Sakkari. Coco Gauff, Jannik Sinner, and Carlos Alcaraz are some notable absentees despite their countries featuring. Russia and Belarus continue to be ostracised following the ongoing war in Ukraine. Hence, Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev, and Aryna Sabalenka miss out.
Group winners will be accompanied by the two best-performing runner-up teams, one each from the Perth and Sydney legs. If Djokovic’s Serbia tops Group E, they will face the leader of Group C. That group comprises defending champions United States, 2023 Davis Cup runners-up Australia, and the United Kingdom. Arguably the most difficult group in the 2024 United Cup, facing its winner will be no easy task for Novak Djokovic and company if they advance.
