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Hopman Cup 2023: Presentation of the first teams

Tennium and the International Tennis Federation (ITF) have announced the first three teams that will participate in the Hopman Cup 2023 (July 19-23) on the courts of the Nice Lawn Tennis Club (LTC).

For the first time in its history, the mixed team competition will be played in Europe, in Nice.

During an official press conference held in Nice on Tuesday, February 28, in the Chéret lounge of the City Hall, Iva Majoli, Tournament Director, and Christian Estrosi, Mayor of Nice, announced the participation of the following teams:

Spain with Carlos Alcaraz & Paula Badosa
France with Richard Gasquet & Alizé Cornet
Switzerland with Leandro Riedi & Belinda Bencic

The youngest world No.1 in tennis history, Carlos Alcaraz, will be in Nice this summer, hoping to win alongside his compatriot Paula Badosa!

A Spanish tennis player, turned professional in 2018, Alcaraz recently won the Argentina Open, defeating second-seeded Englishman Cameron Norrie. At 19, he became the youngest player to win the trophy. Carlos Alcaraz will undoubtedly be one of the favorites for the title at Roland Garros in June 2023.

The French team will be composed of Alizé Cornet holder of the record for 64 consecutive Grand Slam appearances – and Richard Gasquet, who has won 16 singles titles on the ATP circuit, and more than 500 victories in total, making him the French record holder for number of matches won on the ATP circuit.

Alizé Cornet said: “I have a very special attachment to the Nice LTC Club. It will be incredible for me to play on this court this summer. There will be a lot of emotion, and many members of my family will come to see me play. I was born in Nice. I never hesitate to defend the Niçois colors wherever I go, it is really a very strong legacy in me. When I learned that the Hopman Cup was going to take place in Nice, I said to myself: I hope they will let me play. This event is for me!” »

Six teams in total will participate in the 2023 and 2024 editions, and then eight from 2025. As the host country, France will field a team every year. The remaining three teams for the 2023 edition will be announced from March 2023.

As in previous editions of the Hopman Cup, each team will be composed of one male and one female player, with matches between nations consisting of a men’s singles match, a women’s singles match, and a mixed doubles match.
During the press conference, the format of this new Hopman Cup was also revealed, as well as the various infrastructures that will be put in place, including a large Fan Zone and a VIP Village.

TICKETS WILL BE ON SALE DURING THE SECOND HALF OF MARCH ON HOPMANCUP.COM.

Christian Estrosi, Mayor of Nice and President of the Nice Côte d’Azur Métropole, said: “This event confirms once again that Nice is a privileged destination for the biggest international sports events. After the Grand Départ of the Tour de France in 2020, the Top 14 semi-finals in 2022, the Hopman Cup will precede the Rugby World Cup by a few weeks, and then the arrival of the Tour de France in July 2024. Tennis is a major sport in Nice, a discipline with a strong history, with a more than century-old club, and great players who have marked French tennis”

Iva Majoli, the tournament director, said: “ It’s a unique and incredible competition. We play for our country, as a team, and especially in mixed doubles , which is quite rare on the circuit. I loved participating in this competition with my friend Goran Ivanišević in 1996. It was a real joy and a memorable experience.”

David Haggerty, President of the ITF, noted: “I would like to thank the Nice Lawn Tennis Club for their hospitality, the Mayor of Nice for his support, and our partner Tennium, with whom we are delighted to organize this prestigious event for the next five years. Alongside the Billie Jean King Cup and the Davis Cup, the Hopman Cup is another ITF tournament that gives players the opportunity to represent their country and compete for something bigger than themselves. It’s truly a unique event in the tennis calendar, which holds a special place in the hearts of players and supporters. After a brief hiatus since 2019, we are thrilled to bring this event back onto the tennis calendar.”

During this official presentation, Kristoff Puelinckx, CEO of Tennium, added : “We want to thank the ITF for entrusting Tennium with the organization of this historic event. We believe that Nice will be the ideal stage for this new edition of the Hopman Cup, and we could not be happier to organize it with the help of the city of Nice and the Nice Lawn Tennis Club.”