Venus Williams has withdrawn from the Australian Open due to injury and Iga Swiatek's participation could be in doubt.

The American was given a wildcard for the first grand slam of the year, but suffered an injury setback at the ASB Classic this week.

Williams was beaten by Zhu Lin of China in the second round of the tournament in Auckland on Thursday and it was revealed on Saturday she will not play at Melbourne Park.

The 42-year-old, who has shown incredible longevity in her illustrious career, is a seven-time grand slams singles champion and winner of 14 major doubles titles.

Williams won four of her grand slam doubles crowns at the Australian Open and lost her two singles finals in 2003 and 2017.

Australian Kim Birrell has been awarded Williams' wildcard place nine days before the tournament gets under way.

Meanwhile, world number one Swiatek has withdrawn from the Adelaide International 2 next week due to a shoulder injury.

Swiatek was in tears after she was beaten by Jessica Pegula while representing Poland against the United States in the United Cup on Friday.

Iga Swiatek was in tears after losing to Jessica Pegula as the United States took a 2-0 United Cup semi-final lead over Poland, while Italy moved into command against Greece on Friday.

World number one Swiatek was beaten 6-2 6-2 by the impressive Pegula in just 71 minutes at Ken Rosewall Arena.

Swiatek got the better of Pegula three times last year, but the American made light work of seeing off the three-time grand slam champion this time around to put USA in front.

Pegula struck 21 winners, attacking the Swiatek serve in a commanding display just over a week before the Australian Open gets under way.

Swiatek's emotions came out after she was emphatically defeated by the world number three in Sydney.

Pegula said: "I played her today, conditions are totally different than anywhere else I played her. Obviously maybe I had a little bit of an advantage, they just flew in yesterday.

"Definitely the fastest conditions I have played her [in]. Every other place I've played her has been pretty slow. I think that favoured me a lot, and I was able to use that to my advantage and play a really super clean match.

"I think I just was able to execute my game plan probably better than I have previous times."

Frances Tiafoe backed up Pegula's win by beating Kacper Zuk, who replaced the unwell Daniel Michalski, 6-3 6-3.

That ensures Taylor Fritz has a chance to put the United States into the final if he beats Hubert Hurkacz on Saturday.

Italy are in control of the other semi-final following victories for Martina Trevisan and Lorenzo Musetti.

Trevisan upset Maria Sakkari 6-3 6-7 (4-7) 7-5 before Musetti outclassed Stefanos Sakellaridis, winning 6-1 6-1.

Iga Swiatek dragged Poland into the semi-finals of the United Cup with inspired performances in her singles and doubles matches against Italy.

Poland trailed after Lorenzo Musetti and Matteo Berrettini secured wins against Daniel Michalski and Hubert Hurkacz respectively, only for Swiatek and Magda Linette to level things with respective singles victories over Martina Trevisan and Lucia Bronzetti.

That sent the Brisbane city final to a decider in the mixed doubles, which Swiatek and Hurkacz won with ease 6-1 6-2 against Musetti and Camilla Rosatello, though there was a pause in the second set to dry rainfall on the court.

Despite defeat, Italy also advanced to the final four as the city finals loser with the best record.

It was more routine in Sydney as the United States eased to a 4-1 win against Great Britain.

Madison Keys came from a set down to beat Katie Swan, while Jessica Pegula eased past Harriet Dart 6-2 6-0 after Cameron Norrie had defeated Taylor Fritz in three sets.

Despite going a set behind, Frances Tiafoe came back to beat Dan Evans 3-6 7-5 6-3 to clinch the win for his country, before Pegula and Fritz added some gloss after beating Dart and Evans in the mixed doubles.

The third city final in Perth included a thriller as Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas beat Borna Coric 6-0 6-7 (4-7) 7-5. Donna Vekic had no trouble getting Croatia on the board as she eased past Despina Papamichail 6-2 6-0.

Maria Sakkari put Greece 2-1 ahead when she beat Petra Martic 6-3 6-3, but Borna Gojo defeated Stefanos Sakellaridis in straight sets to make it 2-2.

However, Greece secured the win and their place in the last four after the pairing of Sakkari and Tsitsipas saw off Martic and Gojo 7-6 (8-6) 6-4.

Greece will take on Italy in the semi-finals, while Poland face the USA, with both taking place in Sydney on Friday.

Rafael Nadal suffered his second defeat in as many matches after going down 3-6 6-1 7-5 against Alex de Minaur at the United Cup.

The 22-time grand slam champion, who was also beaten by Great Britain's Cameron Norrie in his opening match, is still seeking his first victory of the season with the Australian Open just around the corner.

Home favourite De Minaur delighted the Sydney crowd by recovering from a set and break down to claim his maiden win over the world number two.

"I think it's definitely up there [as one of my best wins]," he said. "It's one of those achievements that you have unlocked in your career.

"But also, it's a big win for myself, one that I really needed. I'm going to cherish and use, take all the confidence from this and be able to hopefully take it to have a good [Australian] summer."

Spain and Australia are unable to progress to the City Finals, but Nuria Parrizas Diaz levelled the Group D tie with a 6-1 6-3 victory over Maddison Inglis.

The USA, who required just two points against Germany to advance to the next stage, set up a showdown with Great Britain after Taylor Fritz and Madison Keys enjoyed straight-set successes over Alexander Zverev and Jule Niemeier respectively. 

Italy moved to the brink of joining them in the City Finals after taking a 2-0 lead over Norway. Lorenzo Musetti overcame Viktor Durasovic in straight sets, while Martina Trevisan edged out Malene Helgo in three.

Greece require one win from their final three matches against Belgium to also advance, Stefanos Tsitsipas hit 12 aces on the way to defeating David Goffin 6-3 6-2 to level the Group A showdown at 1-1.

Poland's winner-takes-all Group B clash with Switzerland is also finely poised at 1-1. World number one Iga Swiatek beat Belinda Bencic 6-3 7-6 (7-3), before Marc-Andrea Huesler's 6-3 6-2 victory against Daniel Michalski.

Roger Federer saluted Iga Swiatek's miracle shot at the United Cup, declaring 'that was crazy' in response to a tweet from the world number one.

Swiatek - the winner of eight WTA titles in 2022 including the French Open and US Open - helped Poland to a commanding 4-1 victory over Kazakhstan in their opening match in Brisbane.

With the Poles' first win in the competition secure, the 21-year-old helped Hubert Hurkacz put the icing on the cake with a 6-3 6-4 success in their mixed doubles clash against Zhibek Kulambayeva and Grigoriy Lomakin.

Swiatek's moment of brilliance came at 30-15 in game six. Desperately chasing Lomakin's drop volley after a fiercely contested rally, she produced a wonderful backhand slice around the net post to the amazement of everyone inside the Pat Rafter Arena.

The shot was executed on several occasions by 20-time grand slam champion Federer, who retired last year, including in his third-round clash with Nick Kyrgios at the 2018 US Open.

Swiatek subsequently asked the Swiss in a light-hearted tweet: "Do you approve?" - to which he replied: "That was crazy."

The world number one is back in action on Monday when Poland ironically face Switzerland, who boast the likes of Olympic gold medallist Belinda Bencic and three-time grand slam winner Stan Wawrinka in Group B.

Dan Evans helped Great Britain reach the last eight of the inaugural United Cup as his 6-3 1-6 6-3 win over Albert Ramos-Vinolas decided the team's Group D tie against Spain.

Rafael Nadal's shock defeat to Cameron Norrie – coupled with Katie Swan's win against Nuria Parrizas-Diaz – put Spain 2-0 down in the best-of-five tie ahead of Sunday's action.

World number 13 Paula Badosa put them back into contention with a hard-fought 6-7 (6-8) 7-6 (7-5) 6-1 win against Harriet Dart, but Evans gave Britain an unassailable lead by battling past Ramos-Vinolas, recovering from a dismal second set.

Having topped Group D, Britain will face the Croup C winners – the United States, Germany or the Czech Republic – for a semi-final place on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Hubert Hurkacz doubled up to help Poland past Kazakhstan, teaming up with Iga Swiatek in the mixed doubles after beating Alexander Bublik.

Hurkacz beat Bublik 7-6 (8-6) 4-6 6-3 in just over two hours before Magda Linette overcame Zhibek Kulambayeva 6-2 6-1.

With Poland's first win in the competition secure, world number one Swiatek helped Hurkacz put the icing on the cake with a 6-3 6-4 victory against Kulambayeva and Grigoriy Lomakin.

The Czech Republic also enjoyed a fruitful day as two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova downed Laura Siegemund in straight sets to seal the team's win against Germany, but Casper Ruud was less fortunate, with Norway losing their tie against Brazil despite his success against Thiago Monteiro.

Iga Swiatek warned rivals "I'm getting stronger and stronger in my mind" as she targets another memorable season in 2023.

The world number one enjoyed a dominant 2022 as she landed eight titles, including the French Open and US Open, while also embarking on a 37-match winning streak – the longest this century on the WTA Tour – and registering 22 'bagel' sets.

Swiatek made a winning start to her 2023 campaign at the United Cup with Poland earlier in the week, beating Kazakhstan's Yulia Putintseva 6-1 6-3 in Brisbane.

While acknowledging she must not become complacent this year and rely on past glories, the 21-year-old feels better prepared for the season with the Australian Open just a fortnight away.

"I feel more solid, and I feel more stability as well because last year, Adelaide was my first tournament with a new coach [Tomasz Wiktorowski], so that was my main focus," she said.

"This year, I have totally different challenges, so it's really hard to compare. But I feel like I had more time to actually work on some technical stuff at home, and hopefully I'm going to be able to use it in matches.

"I just think that it's going to be pretty easy for my head to compare everything to last year. And I feel like it's not really going to be helpful.

"Last year, it wasn't perfect, but sometimes when you win tournaments, all your head can remember is those good moments and that it went so smoothly.

"It wasn't like that, but I don't really want to go into those tournaments and be held back by my previous results. I want to treat it as new chapters, so I'm going to try to do that.

"But this is the biggest challenge I'd say, and we'll see how I'm going to go with that. Usually when I had goals like that, I had ups and downs, but I feel like I'm getting stronger and stronger in my mind, so maybe I'm going to be able to control that."

Rafael Nadal's United Cup campaign began with defeat against Cameron Norrie as Great Britain established a 2-0 lead over Spain in Group D.

The 22-time grand slam winner surrendered a first-set lead before going down 3-6 6-3 6-4 against the world number 14, who secured his first victory in five meetings.

Norrie, who became only the second Briton after Andy Murray to beat the Spaniard, set the tone for his team, with Katie Dart also coming from behind to deny Nuria Parrizas Diaz 3-6 6-1 6-2 later on.

Meanwhile, Germany's Alexander Zverev lost in straight sets on his return to ATP action, going down 6-4 6-2 to Jiri Lehecka of the Czech Republic, who went 2-0 up in the tie after Marie Bouzkova defeated Jule Niemeier 6-2 7-5.

World number one Iga Swiatek got Poland off to a flying start against Kazakhstan in Brisbane with a commanding 6-1 6-3 victory over Yulia Putintseva, but defeat for Daniel Michalski against Timofey Skatov leaves the Group B tie finely poised.

Brazil enjoyed a flawless start against Norway in Group E. Beatriz Haddad Maia was a 6-4 6-2 winner over Malene Helgo, and Felipe Meligeni Alves overcame Viktor Durasovic 6-3 6-3.

The spoils were shared between Belgium and Bulgaria in Group A with Alison van Uytvanck beating Isabella Shinikova, before David Goffin was seen off by Grigor Dimitrov 6-4 7-5.

Croatia closed the day with a pair of victories against Argentina in Group F as Donna Vekic and Borna Coric defeated Maria Carle and Francisco Cerundolo respectively.

Carlos Alcaraz pinpointed Iga Swiatek as a hot shot example to follow as the world number one looks to successfully defend top spot in the ATP rankings.

Spaniard Alcaraz enjoyed a hugely impressive 2022 season, winning five titles including a first grand slam at the US Open.

The 19-year-old subsequently became the youngest number one in ATP history, as well as the youngest player to top the year-end rankings.

It has also been a dominant year for Swiatek, who landed eight titles including the French Open and US Open, while also embarking on a 37-match winning streak – the longest this century on the WTA Tour – and registering 22 'bagel' sets.

Alcaraz, who knows there will be greater expectations on him delivering the goods, hopes to follow in the footsteps of the runaway WTA leader.

 

"I see her year has been incredible," Alcaraz told Arab News. "She broke a record for the longest winning streak [this century]. It's amazing,

"I wish to be like her, to not lose the number one [ranking]. But I think it's almost impossible. I'm going to lose it, but the point is to recover it and stay there at number one as much as I can."

He added: "Obviously yes, all the people want to beat the number one in the world. I could feel that after the US Open, everyone had a target on me and everyone wanted to face me on court. That's what I have to be prepared for."

Despite an incredible year, Alcaraz admitted his achievements are yet to truly hit home.

"It sounds like a dream for me," he said. "Honestly, there are so many times I think about this year, about my position right now, and I still can't believe it. I'm thinking: 'Is this real? I’m number one in the world?' I'm dreaming. It's something I have to realise someday."

Rafael Nadal and Nick Kyrgios could face off in the inaugural United Cup, while WTA world number one Iga Swiatek will represent Poland.

The United Cup is the new warm-up tournament for the ATP and WTA Tour seasons, and will take place in Australia in December and January.

While ATP world number one Carlos Alcaraz will not feature, compatriot Nadal will be competing for Spain, and they have been drawn alongside Australia and Great Britain in Group D.

Those matches will be played in Perth, with a clash between Nadal and Kyrgios, who have enjoyed an entertaining rivalry down the years, in the offing.

They were set to meet in the semi-finals at Wimbledon this year, but Nadal withdrew due to injury, handing Kyrgios a walkover into his first grand slam final, which he lost to Novak Djokovic, who will not be playing in Australia.

Serbia are not among the batch of teams taking part, but even so, there remains doubt whether Djokovic would be able to enter Australia given his stance against the COVID-19 vaccine, which eventually saw him deported from the country after a drawn-out legal battle ahead of this year's Australian Open.

Emma Raducanu has decided against playing for the British team, which also does not feature Andy Murray.

Casper Ruud, the beaten US Open finalist, will play for Norway in Group E, in Brisbane, while Alexander Zverev will be in action for Germany.

Swiatek is the biggest name from the WTA Tour to enter, with the brilliant 21-year-old lining up alongside Hubert Hurkacz for Poland in Group B.

Maria Sakkari and Stefanos Tsitsipas, along with his brother Petros, will team up for Greece in Group A.

Two more countries will be admitted to the tournament later in November.

Aryna Sabalenka eliminated world number one Iga Swiatek 6-2 2-6 6-1 on Sunday to advance to the decider of the WTA Finals.

Swiatek had not lost a set during her week in Fort Worth entering the contest, earning her spot in the semi-final after straight-sets wins against Coco Gauff, Caroline Garcia and Daria Kasatkina.

Needing to start well to give herself a chance against the in-form Polish star, Sabalenka did just that, breaking Swiatek in her first service game.

Swiatek broke back instantly, but she had no response when the BelaruSsian secured two more breaks of serve in the opening frame to wrap it up in 40 minutes.

After winning only 43 per cent (12-of-28) of her service points in the first set, Swiatek seemed to figure things out in the second, raising that number to 61 per cent (17-of-28) to win the first four games and run away with it and send the match to a decider.

But Swiatek's uncharacteristic errors came back to bite her, committing two double faults in each of the three sets, and after posting a combined 21 winners with 17 unforced errors in the first two frames, she mustered only five winners with nine unforced errors in the last.

Sabalenka rattled off five consecutive games to close out the match, utilising her imposing serve to get the job done, serving 12 aces to Swiatek's one.

She will now face Caroline Garcia in the final after the Frenchwoman proved too strong for Maria Sakkari in a 6-3 6-2 victory earlier in the day.

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS

Sabalenka - 12/9
Swiatek - 1/6

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS

Sabalenka - 23/19
Swiatek - 26/26

BREAK POINTS WON

Sabalenka - 6/13
Swiatek - 4/10

World number one Iga Swiatek won the Tracy Austin Group in style with a comprehensive straight-sets victory over Coco Gauff in the WTA Finals in Fort Worth on Saturday.

Swiatek made it three wins out of three matches in the group stage without dropping a set, getting past fourth seed Gauff 6-3 6-0 in one hour and 10 minutes.

The 2022 US Open and French Open champion advances and will take on seventh seed Aryna Sabalenka in the WTA Finals semi-finals on Sunday.

The Pole made light work of Gauff, improving her head-to-head dominance to 5-0, with her 28-minute second set representing the 22nd bagel she has doled out this season.

Swiatek committed 15 unforced errors in the first set, but made only two in a lopsided second frame where she won 26 of 36 points.

Gauff had pushed Swiatek to 3-3 in the first set, before the top seed broke her twice to clinch the opening frame, putting her foot to the throat in the second.

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS

Swiatek - 20/17
Gauff - 5/15

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS

Swiatek - 0/1
Gauff - 4/1

BREAK POINTS WON

Swiatek - 5/10
Gauff - 0/3

13 - Only Justine Henin in 2007 (11) has won the group dropping fewest games in the Round Robin at the WTA Finals since the current format was re-introduced in 2003 than Iga Swiatek this season (13). Tornado.@WTA @WTA_insider @WTAFinals pic.twitter.com/cAd0dnfQ3k

— OptaAce (@OptaAce) November 6, 2022

Iga Swiatek moved onto the verge of sealing her place in the final four of the WTA Finals as she cruised to a 6-3 6-2 triumph over Caroline Garcia at Fort Worth on Thursday.

Garcia was the only WTA Finals player to have beaten Swiatek this year, but the world number one swept her aside with an impressive display in one hour and 23 minutes.

Swiatek remains yet to lose a set at Fort Worth and will qualify for the semi-finals should Coco Gauff fail to beat Daria Kasatkina in two sets, or if Kasatkina wins.

Garcia managed the first break in the third game of the opener, but Swiatek broke back immediately before finding another at 4-3 up, kicking on from there to take the opening set.

The Pole was excellent in the second set, breaking Garcia twice to secure another victory and inch closer to the final four.

Swiatek gets some measure of revenge for the 6-1 1-6 6-4 defeat to Garcia at the Warsaw Open quarter-finals in July, her only loss on clay over the season.

A Kasatkina win against Gauff will see Swiatek advance as group winner, while a Gauff win in three sets will seal her progression but leave her position in the group undecided.

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS

Swiatek - 17/8
Garcia - 16/14

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS

Swiatek - 1/2
Garcia - 3/3

BREAK POINTS WON

Swiatek - 4/5
Garcia - 1/6

Iga Swiatek continued her hoodoo over Daria Kasatkina as she breezed through their opening match at the WTA Finals.

Swiatek needed just an hour and 23 minutes to see off Kasatkina 6-2 6-3 in Fort Worth, Texas.

The world number one was in command throughout, her movement and intensity too much for Kasatkina in the Tracey Austin Group encounter.

Swiatek saved all three of the break points she faced and converted four of the seven chances she created for herself.

She sent down 23 winners, her highest tally in a single WTA Finals match, to complete her fifth win over Kasatkina this season.

The Pole is the first player to win five or more matches against the same opponent in a single season since Petra Kvitova against Lucie Safarova in 2014.

With her 46th such win of the year (excluding Billie Jean King Cup matches), she is the first player to win 46-plus WTA main draw matches in straight sets in a season since Serena Williams (66) and Agnieszka Radwanska (46) in 2013.

BREAK POINTS WON

Swiatek - 3/7

Kasatkina - 0/3

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS

Swiatek - 23/18

Kasatkina - 4/9

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS

Swiatek - 1/3

Kasatkina - 1/1

There will be one racing certainty when the WTA Finals gets under way: a new champion will be crowned.

Iga Swiatek heads the list of contenders to carry off the trophy in Fort Worth, Texas, having enjoyed a spectacular season.

Ascendant Americans Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff will be chasing a home victory, while Tunisia's Ons Jabeur has reached finals at Wimbledon and the US Open so loves the big occasion.

Ahead of the tournament getting under way on Monday, Stats Perform has taken a look at the eight-player field.

Swiatek still the player to beat

With no past winner in the line-up, there is every reason to look to the world number one, Swiatek, as favourite.

The 21-year-old Polish player has eight titles this year, lifting trophies at Doha, Indian Wells, Miami, Stuttgart, Rome, the French Open, the US Open and San Diego.

Indeed, she is the only grand slam singles winner in the draw, with Ash Barty having retired and Elena Rybakina absent after no ranking or race points were awarded at Wimbledon, where she was a surprise champion.

Rybakina's absence calls into question the meritocracy of this year's tournament, which is intended to showcase the top performers on tour, yet there can be no doubt the season's premier performer is in the draw.

French Open and US Open winner Swiatek's remarkable run of 10 straight-sets victories in finals (dating back to the 2020 French Open) was finally ended by Barbora Krejcikova, who sprang a shock by winning in Ostrava in early October.

But by getting back to winning ways a week later in San Diego, scrapping for a three-set victory over Donna Vekic in the title match, Swiatek produced a typically impressive response, beating Qinwen Zheng, Gauff and Pegula on her way through the draw to improve to 64-8 in her win-loss record for the year.

Here is a measure of her dominance this season: Swiatek headed the 'Race to the WTA Finals' rankings with 10,335 points, with the players in second (Jabeur) to eighth place (Daria Kasatkina) having tallies ranging between 4,555 and 2,935 points.

Is Pegula the chief rival to Swiatek?

She might not have been the player that would have sprung to mind even a month ago, but Pegula's victory at the Guadalajara Open this month was an eye-opener.

Beginning by saving match points in a thrilling three-setter against Rybakina, Pegula took down grand slam winners Bianca Andreescu, Sloane Stephens and Victoria Azarenka before swatting aside Maria Sakkari in the final.

Pegula has reached quarter-finals at the Australian, French and US Opens in 2022, and she has a tour-high 39 wins in WTA 1000 events since the beginning of last year.

She is up to third in the WTA rankings, one ahead of Coco Gauff, with the United States now having two women in the top five for the first time since October 2010, when Serena Williams was number two and sister Venus sat fourth.

As Pegula said after the Guadalajara final: "I'm definitely a very ambitious person. A little bit of a perfectionist, as well. I don't think you could win if you weren't ambitious, especially at this level.

"I feel like it's going to give me more motivation going forward knowing I can win these big titles. I think it will give me a lot of confidence ending the year, going into next year."

These are spirited words. She heads into the tournament with a 0-4 record against Swiatek in 2022, however.

Who's in, who's out, what's it all about?

As well as Swiatek and Pegula, the field for the eight-day tournament includes Caroline Garcia, Aryna Sabalenka and Sakkari, who have all featured at the WTA Finals in the past.

Four players make their debuts, including Pegula, who is joined as a newcomer by Jabeur, Gauff and Daria Kasatkina.

Gauff, 18, has become the 14th player aged under 19 to reach the WTA top five since the rankings were introduced in 1975.

She would not be the youngest WTA Finals champion, were she to lift the title, as Monica Seles has a tight grip on that record, having triumphed at the age of 16 years and 11 months at the 1990 edition.

Last year's champion Garbine Muguruza is absent. The Spaniard was expected by many to push on and enjoy a stellar 2022 season, but it did not play out that way, with the former French Open and Wimbledon winner sliding to 57th in the world rankings after a dismal campaign.

It goes to show that whoever prevails in Fort Worth, we should be cautious about treating the outcome as an indication of what to expect in the new year.

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