We thrive to play for our country: De Minuar ahead of United Cup

Ace tennis star Alex De Minaur said that representing the country while donning the green and gold is something the players thrive on ahead of their United Cup campaign.

"We thrive playing for our country, representing the green and gold. There is always a lot of passion and pride and it is a great time of the year. We are in the Aussie summer, ready to start 2023. There is no better place to be," said De Minaur.

The Australian team competing in the United Cup visited Sydney Harbour ahead of their Group D clash against Great Britain.

De Minaur, Tomljanovic, Jason Kubler, and Zoe Hives laughed and smiled as they posed for pictures by the Sydney Harbour Bridge in anticipation of the 11-day tournament.

"Aussies thrive in team competitions. You see with the Billie Jean King Cup and Davis Cup, we made finals and I don't think many people would have picked us to be in the last two standing. When I played for Australia for the first time, the camaraderie and the vibe of the team over that week was great. We see each other a lot during the year but don't get to talk much. But when we come together it is like we have never left, so it is something in the culture," said Tomljanovic as quoted by ATPTour.com.

The United Cup, a mixed-teams competition including 18 nations, will be played in Brisbane, Perth, and Sydney, with the knockout round taking place in Sydney. The competition, which runs from December 29 to January 8, will feature two men's singles matches, two women's singles matches, and one mixed doubles match in each United Cup tie.

Nick Kyrgios-led Team Australia will face Team Great Britain to begin its title defence on Thursday night. Group D also includes Team Spain, which is led by Rafael Nadal and Paula Badosa.

"It is exciting. It is a new event in tennis. Innovating in this great sport and I think it will bring a new audience. We have a tough group, but we are happy being the underdogs. We just have to give it our all, that's all we can ask for ourselves," said de Minaur.

( With inputs from ANI )