Tennis Channel Brings U.S. Tennis Fans LIVE Coverage of 2012 Hyundai Hopman Cup

Written by: Staff on 29th December 2011

Tennis Channel Brings U.S. Tennis Fans LIVE Coverage of 2012 Hyundai Hopman Cup

Bethanie Mattek-Sands of the US returns to Jelena Jankovic of Serbia during their third round match for the French Open tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, 27 May 2011. EPA/CHRISTOPHE KARABA |

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 29, 2011 – Tennis Channel will bring viewers live tournament coverage from the 2012 Hyundai Hopman Cup beginning Monday, Jan. 2, at 10 a.m. ET. The network’s telecast will include U.S. competitions and the championship final of the annual international mixed-doubles tournament. All Hopman Cup matches, which feature teams consisting of one man and one woman, will take place at the Burswood Dome in Perth, Australia, Dec. 31-Jan. 7.

The United States continues to lead all nations in Hopman Cup titles, claiming its sixth crown in last year’s competition when Bethanie Mattek-Sands and John Isner defeated Belgium’s Justine Henin and Ruben Bemelmans 2-1. This year’s mixed-doubles team features Olympic silver medalist, Mardy Fish, and U.S. Fed Cup regular Mattek-Sands, who is competing for her second consecutive year. Fish, the World No. 8 singles player in men’s tennis, made headlines when he reached his first Wimbledon quarterfinal by defeating 2010 finalist Tomas Berdych in straight sets, before losing to defending champion Rafael Nadal. Mattek-Sands is currently ranked third among American female players, and during last year’s Hopman Cup competition beat Italy’s reigning French Open champion Francesca Schiavone en route to the U.S. championship.

The Americans’ first challenge is Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki and her country’s top male player, Frederik Nielsen. Wozniacki remains the World No. 1 singles player, and made an impressive run to this year’s US Open semifinals before falling to finalist Serena Williams. In 2012 she captured six WTA tournament titles.

Coverage from Perth, Australia (all times EST):

Monday, Jan. 2:

10 a.m. – Live, USA v. Denmark

7 a.m. – Instant Encore, USA v. Denmark (Tuesday, Jan. 3)

Wednesday, Jan. 4:

10 a.m. – Live, USA v. Czech Republic

Saturday, Jan. 7:

2 a.m. – Live, Championship

In their second competition, the Americans will face the Czech Republic’s Berdych and Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova. Berdych, World No. 7, recently helped his country beat Romania 5-0 to guarantee a spot in the 2012 Davis Cup competition. He reached his first final since the 2010 Wimbledon Championships by defeating Jo-Wilfried Tsonga before upsetting Croatia’s Marin Cilic to win the China Open. Kvitova comes into 2012 after a career year that saw her finish ranked World No. 2 and capture her first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon by defeating Maria Sharapova. She recently won the 2011 WTA Championships and helped her Fed Cup team clinch its first title since it competed under the flag of Czechoslovakia by beating Russia 3-2 in Moscow.

A number of top-ranked tennis stars are competing for this year’s Hopman Cup. This includes China’s Li Na, France’s Marion Bartoli, Spain’s Fernando Verdasco and Australia’s Lleyton Hewitt.

Topics: Hyundai Hopman Cup, Mattek-Sands, Wta