发布时间: 1/9/2026
Image caption: Emma Raducanu missed Great Britain's opening United Cup match because of a long-standing foot injury
Great Britain’s United Cup Campaign Ends with Raducanu’s Injury Return Loss
Tennis fans around the world were eagerly awaiting Emma Raducanu’s return to the court, and her comeback match at the 2025 United Cup carried high stakes for Great Britain. A win against Greece would have secured the team’s spot in the quarter-finals, but despite her best efforts, the 23-year-old fell to Maria Sakkari in a three-set battle, ultimately leading to Great Britain’s elimination from the group stage.
Raducanu had been sidelined since early October with what she described as "light bone bruising" on her right foot, forcing her to pull out of her highly anticipated season opener against Naomi Osaka just days prior. The decision to sit out against Osaka was precautionary, and many hoped her return against Sakkari would mark a strong comeback after months of recovery.
For stretches of the match, it looked like Raducanu was finding her rhythm: she moved freely across the court, struck clean, powerful shots, and showed impressive fighting spirit to level the match at one set apiece. However, after over two months without competitive play, understandable rustiness began to show, and she ran out of steam in the physical deciding set, losing 6-3, 3-6, 6-1.
In a post-match interview, Raducanu opened up about her limited preparation and growing confidence. "I started hitting two weeks ago, so it's been a good two and a bit months where I didn't play," she shared. "Being able to produce that, having not played, is just giving me confidence to what I can do when I do practise more. I know now I just need to get my head down and keep working."
Before Raducanu’s match, Great Britain’s Billy Harris had put up a valiant fight against two-time Grand Slam finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Image caption: Billy Harris (right) is a late bloomer at the top level and still trying to break into the world's top 100 for the first time
The 30-year-old, ranked 127th in the world, pushed Tsitsipas to the brink, coming just two points away from securing the biggest win of his career. Tsitsipas, who has struggled with form and fitness lately and dropped to 34th in the rankings, had to dig deep to clinch the match 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 (7-4).
After the tense contest, Tsitsipas praised Harris’s exceptional performance. "I got fed up of losing matches like that so I tried everything in my power not to let it happen again. I'm grateful for coming through that," he said. "Billy put out an incredible performance, I haven't played such a high-quality match in a long time. He did great to push me to my limit."
Great Britain’s mixed doubles pair, Olivia Nicholls and Neal Skupski, managed to secure a consolation win against Greece’s Despina Papamichail and Stefanos Sakellaridis, but it wasn’t enough to turn the tide of the tie and keep their quarter-final hopes alive.
Top Tennis Stars Face Upsets While Swiatek Secures Poland’s Win
The United Cup group stage delivered several unexpected results from some of the sport’s biggest names, adding extra drama to the early rounds. World number four Coco Gauff suffered a surprising singles defeat to 42nd-ranked Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, ending her nine-match unbeaten streak in the United Cup. Gauff struggled with 14 double faults and 54 unforced errors, losing the match 6-1, 6-7 (3-7), 6-0.
Despite the singles loss, Gauff bounced back strongly in the mixed doubles, partnering with Christian Harrison to beat Spain’s Inigo Cervantes and Yvonne Cavalle 7-6 (7-5), 6-0. This crucial win ensured the defending champions, the United States, topped Group A and advanced to the quarter-finals, maintaining their title defense hopes.
In another shock result, world number three Alexander Zverev was defeated by former top-10 player Hubert Hurkacz, who was making his first competitive appearance since June due to a knee injury. Hurkacz, now ranked 83rd after his lengthy layoff, dominated the match to give Poland a 1-0 lead against Germany in Sydney.
Poland’s victory was sealed by six-time major champion Iga Swiatek, who had to fight back from a set down against Eva Lys. Lys had never won a set against Swiatek in their previous three meetings, and though she took the first set with impressive play, Swiatek’s experience and skill shone through as she secured a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 win to keep Poland’s United Cup hopes alive.