Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas and Maria Sakkari secured a semifinal berth at the 2023 United Cup by defeating Borna Gojo and Petra Martic of Croatia 7-6 (8-6), 6-4. Their impressive display in the mixed doubles served as the deciding factor in the tie, allowing the Greek team to snag the final spot in the final four while maintaining their impressive unbeaten runs.
Stefanos Tsitsipas and Maria Sakkari defeated Croatia’s Borna Gojo and Petra Martic 7-6 (8-6) 6-4 in the mixed doubles match in the Perth City Finals and sealed a semifinal berth for Greece at the 2023 United Cup. Tsitsipas and Sakkari produced a brilliant performance and helped their team to claim the last available spot in the final four with a dramatic win in the final mixed doubles match of their tie against Croatia. Tsitsipas and Sakkari pulled through phenomenally, maintaining their unbeaten streaks.
After the singles matches ended in a 2-2 stalemate, Tsitsipas and Sakkari stepped up to deliver the necessary 3-2 overall win. The pair's familiarity with the RAC Arena in Perth and their seamless coordination proved vital in such a high-pressure moment. By winning in straight sets, Greece eliminated Croatia, which opened the door for Italy to progress as the best-ranked losing side.
Wednesday saw two City Finals decided by the mixed doubles matches. Poland's path to the final four was similarly paved when world number one Iga Swiatek and Hubert Hurkacz secured their victory.
The competition started with Croatia's Donna Vekic dominating Despina Papamichail with a quick 6-2, 6-0 win in just over an hour. However, the momentum shifted when the 24-year-old Tsitsipas staged a remarkable comeback in the final set—recovering from a 4-1 deficit—to defeat Coric 6-0, 6-7(4), 7-5 and level the score for Greece.
Sakkari then took control with a strong serving game, beating Martic 6-3, 6-3 to put Greece ahead 2-1; she was nearly untouchable on her first serve, winning 73% of those points and facing only one break. Croatia fought back when Borna Gojo defeated the low-ranked Stefanos Sakellaridis, a win that kept Gojo's singles record perfect in Perth and tied the overall score at 2-2. This set the stage for the mixed doubles showdown, which the Greeks eventually won after a grueling 94-minute battle.
The final four lineup for the first-ever United Cup consists of Greece, Poland, Italy, and the USA. The first semifinal clash between the US and Poland begins January 6 at 1 pm, featuring a headline match between Jessica Pegula and Iga Swiatek.
Greece will face off against Italy in the other semifinal, starting with a match between Maria Sakkari and Martina Trevisan, followed by a bout between Michail Pervolarakis and Lorenzo Musetti. The rest of the semifinal matchups are scheduled for January 7.