Hopman Cup

The Hopman Cup is an annual international team tennis tournament held in Perth, Western Australia in early-January (sometimes commencing in late-December) each year.

Related Topics:
Tennis - Tournament - Perth - Western Australia

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Unlike other major international team tennis tournaments like the Davis Cup and the Fed Cup, which are strictly for men or women only, the Hopman Cup is a mixed competition where male and female players team up together on combined teams.

Related Topics:
Davis Cup - Fed Cup

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Eight nations are selected annually to compete in the Hopman Cup. Each team consists of one male player and one female player. Each match-up between two teams at the championships consists of:

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• one women's singles match
• one men's singles match
• one mixed doubles match

Each year the eight competing teams are spearated into two groups of four and face-off against each of the other three teams in their group in a round-robin format. The top two teams in each group then meet a final to decide the champions.

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The matches are played at an indoor hardcourt venue - the Burswood Dome at Burswood Casino.

Related Topics:
Hardcourt - Burswood Casino

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The tournament is a sanctioned event in the calendar of the International Tennis Federation (ITF), and individuals players' results are included in the calculation of the tennis' world rankings. The competition is considered by many leading players to be an important lead-up tournament to the Australian Open each January.

Related Topics:
International Tennis Federation - Australian Open

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The winning team receives a silver cup perpetual trophy, and the winning team members are presented with distinctive individual trophies in the shape of a tennis ball encrusted with diamonds from the Argyle diamond mine in the Kimberley region of Western Australia.

Related Topics:
Diamonds - Argyle diamond mine - Kimberley region of Western Australia

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The championship is named in honour of Harry Hopman (1906-1985), an Australian tennis player and coach who guided the country to no less than 15 Davis Cup titles in the 1938-1969 period.

Related Topics:
Harry Hopman - 1906 - 1985 - Australia - Player - Coach - Davis Cup - 1938 - 1969

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The Tournament Director of the Hopman Cup is the former Australian tennis player Paul McNamee, who played a key role in the founding of the championships.

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Since the Hopman Cup was founded, it has been attended every year by the late-Harry Hopman's wife, Lucy, who travels to the tournament annually from her home in the United States. Fans have warmly adopted her as the 'Queen of the Cup'.

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Hopman Cup: Past Champions ►