Sydney, Jan 4 (IANS) Alexander Zverev clinched Germany’s victory over the Netherlands on Sunday at the United Cup, where the world No. 3 defeated Tallon Griekspoor 7-5 6-0.
Zverev’s win came after Germany’s Eva Lys downed Suzan Lamens 6-2, 6-2 earlier in Group F action.
The server held the advantage for the early stages of Zverev and Griekspoor’s clash until the German seized a crucial opportunity, breaking to love at 6-5 to take the opening set.
In his first match of 2026, Zverev played at a high level and rarely looked back, having dropped just seven points in the second set, United Cup reports.
Zverev leads Griekspoor 9-2 in their ATP Head-to-Head series, marking the second time he has recorded nine tour-level wins against a single opponent (Zverev leads Adrian Mannarino 9-0).
Earlier, Lys launched the 2024 United Cup champions with a strong start by defeating Lamens 6-2, 6-2.
After trading breaks twice in the first five games, Lys won a pair of crucial games to establish a 5-2 lead and hardly looked back. She denied Lamens a game point to level at 3-3, then broke on her third break point in the sixth game and secured a follow-up hold despite trailing 15/40.
Nine of the match’s 14 games went to deuce, and Lys won seven of them. Perhaps the most important game was a 1-1 hold from the German in the second set, during which she shook off an injury scare. After taking a medical timeout for blisters while leading 5-2 in the opener, Lys pushed through another tumble that left her shaking out her knee.
Zverev and Laura Siegemund closed the tie with a 6-3, 6-2 mixed-doubles victory over Griekspoor and Demi Schuurs, securing a clean sweep for Germany.
–IANS
bc/vi
