United States won 1st ever United Cup

• The United States won the inaugural United Cup trophy on Sunday.
• Taylor Fritz edged Matteo Berrettini in a thrilling match for victory.
• Jessica Pegula and Frances Tiafoe each scored a point for the Americans.

The United States won the inaugural United Cup trophy on Sunday, defeating Italy in the final in Sydney.

After edging Matteo Berrettini in a thrilling match, 7-6(4), 7-6(6), Taylor Fritz claimed the victory and the trophy.

Earlier, Jessica Pegula and Frances Tiafoe each scored a point for the Americans, giving them a 3-0 lead over Italy.

“It’s fantastic. It’s incredible that the team won this tournament. “We came in with pretty high hopes for the event, or at least I did,” Fritz said. “I was overjoyed to be in that position to win the match.”

OUR FIRST EVER UNITED CUP CHAMPIONS! 🇺🇸 🏆#UnitedCup pic.twitter.com/JBlD9fJ8xK

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— United Cup (@UnitedCupTennis) January 8, 2023

With only two individual matches lost, the United States enjoyed a strong run in the United Cup. None of their matches, though, were any closer than 4-1.

Pegula, the third-ranked player in the world, defeated Martina Trevisan 6-4, 6-2 to get to the WTA 1000 Guadalajara final in 2022, where she quickly rose to the top 10.

The Italian then withdrew due to a right shoulder injury as Tiafoe won the opening set 6-2 against Lorenzo Musetti.

Fritz had nine break points against Berrettini, but he didn’t allow that affect how he performed in the important tiebreaks.

The defending BNP Paribas Open winner remained composed throughout the match, eventually prevailing in two hours and 16 minutes.

Berrettini used a forehand winner to save the first championship point he faced in the second-set tie-break. When the Italian missed a forehand on the full stretch, Fritz won a difficult rally to gain what proved to be the deciding mini break.

Fritz took advantage of his second chance, and Team USA raced from its Team Zone to celebrate by tackling the 25-year-old to the ground.

“The emotions when you win and everyone comes running at you are incredible, “Fritz stated. “I’m not sure whether you saw the replay, but Frances almost headbutted me!”

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