Fritz beats Berrettini to secure US title at inaugural United Cup

The United Cup team of the United States will certainly be happy with how they started the 2023 season as they beat every country to claim a title at the inaugural event.

After dominating their group, the City Final, and the semi-final tie, the United States took on Italy in the final of the 2023 United Cup. That was their strongest opponent in the competition.

The tie started with a match between the WTA World No. 3, Jessica Pegula, and No. 27, Martina Trevisan. After losing to Petra Kvitova in her first match of the season, Pegula proved to be an unbeatable opponent at the United Cup, even for Iga Swiatek.

She showed a similar performance also against the Italian, as she won 6-4, 6-2 in an hour and 30 minutes to give her country a crucial lead.

Then, Italy experienced a bit of bad luck in the closest match of the tie in terms of the rankings. The ATP World No. 19, Frances Tiafoe, took on No. 23 Lorenzo Musetti.

The American dominated the first set, winning it 6-2, but then, his opponent was forced to withdraw from the match and the US led 2-0. It was an unfortunate moment for the Italian team, as Musetti's injury troubles helped the United States.

Matteo Berrettini was the man who the whole of Italy relied on, as he took on Taylor Fritz. The match was closely contested as no player could break the opponent, and it eventually reached two tie-breaks.

The American player was serving exceptionally throughout the match, hitting 15 aces, which was eight more than his opponent. He also won 87% of rallies after his first serve, and his serving masterclass proved to be decisive.

Fritz proved to be better in both as he won 7-6(4), 7-6(6) in two hours and 17 minutes to secure an inaugural United Cup for his country.