SYDNEY – With a battling 2-1 win over the Swiss, Poland finally won the United Cup to banish the pain of previous two final defeats and secure a long-awaited maiden triumph in the season-opening mixed-team competition.

Hubert Hurkacz continued his resurgence in his first event back after a near seven-month injury layoff by beating veteran Stan Wawrinka 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 to level the tie at 1-1 after Iga Swiatek lost 3-6, 6-0, 6-3 to an inspired Belinda Bencic.

The mixed doubles duo of Katarzyna Kawa and Jan Zielinski then downed Bencic and Jakub Paul 6-4, 6-3 in the decider to spark jubilant scenes in Sydney.

“We’ve finally made it. Third-time lucky,” Swiatek said. “We worked hard … I want to thank the team. This year it was such a team effort, I really felt the support. Even though my singles performances weren’t perfect, you got my spirits up and you all believed until the end.”

Victory capped a superb campaign for the Poles, who beat last year’s champions the United States in the semi-finals, and set up Hurkacz to carry momentum into his singles campaign at the Australian Open that begins on Jan 18.

Six-time Grand Slam champion Swiatek heads into the year’s opening major at Melbourne Park with back-to-back defeats after losing to Bencic and Coco Gauff in the semi-finals, though the world No. 2 will remain among the top contenders.

Swiatek’s defeat by Gauff looked to be firmly in the rear-view mirror when she shot out of the blocks against 11th-ranked Bencic, the 24-year-old breaking early and going up 3-0 in the first set in the most entertaining contest of the day.

Bencic dragged herself back into the match but Swiatek went ahead 5-3 with her third break and held serve in the tight ninth game, before clinching the opening stanza with a huge backhand winner down the line.

But Swiatek’s game fell flat thereafter as Bencic powered through the second set without dropping a game and took a 4-1 lead in the decider as the crowd at the Ken Rosewall Arena geared up for a major upset.

Having squandered two match points at 5-2, Bencic closed out the contest on her own delivery for only her second victory over Swiatek that handed Switzerland a 1-0 lead in the tie.

Playing in his final season on tour, Wawrinka pushed Hurkacz hard to force a deciding set in the second singles encounter, but the 40-year-old was unable to grab the victory that would have clinched the tie.

“He’s definitely an inspiration,” Hurkacz said about the three-time Major champion.

“I grew up watching him play, compete and win so much. His game style is really powerful. The shots he pulls off sometimes, you can really admire them even when you are on the other side of the net.”

Hurkacz was equally impressive on the day, sending down 18 aces and saving eight out of the nine break points he faced in the match to set up the decider, where the experience of Kawa and Zielinski helped Poland prevail.

Elsewhere on Jan 11, Alexander Bublik won the Hong Kong Open, which will propel the Kazakh into the top 10 of the world rankings for the first time.

He overpowered world No. 7 Lorenzo Musetti of Italy 7-6 (7-2), 6-3 to start his season in style.

“Top 10, if you told me that last April, I would never have believed you,” said the 28-year-old, who carried on his momentum from a breakthrough 2025, in which he won four titles to reach a career-high 11th in the rankings.

Bublik lost in the Australian Open’s first round a year ago and had slumped from 37th to 82nd in the rankings.

Also receiving a boost ahead of the year’s first Grand Slam is three-time Australian Open runner-up Daniil Medvedev, who beat United States’ Brandon Nakashima 6-2, 7-6 (7-1) to lift the Brisbane Open title.

The victory marked the Russian’s 22nd ATP title – at 22 different events – and his first since the former world world No. 1 ended an 882-day wait for a title with a win over Corentin Moutet in the Almaty Open final in October 2025.

The 2021 US Open champion dedicated the win to his coaching staff and family, having missed his daughter’s first birthday to play in the tournament.

“I want to dedicate this to my family who could not make it to Australia, as it’s too far from my home,” the Russian said at the presentation ceremony.

“It’s 23 hours from where I live and with two young kids, it’s not easy. I decided to play in tournament and I stuck with the decision.

“But my daughter had her birthday when I was here – so I dedicate this to her first birthday. This (trophy) is a bit too heavy for her, though.” REUTERS, AFP

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