A hardcourt (or hard court ) is a surface or floor on which a sport is played, most usually in reference to tennis courts . It is typically made of rigid materials such as asphalt or concrete , and covered with acrylic resins to seal the surface and mark the playing lines, while providing some cushioning. Historically, hardwood surfaces were also in use in indoor settings, similar to an indoor basketball court , but these surfaces are rare now.
8-520: The United Cup is an international hard court tennis competition featuring mixed-gender teams from 18 countries. The first event was held in December 2022 through January 2023. The event is played across multiple Australian cities over 11 days in the leadup to the Australian Open . It is also the first mixed-gender team event to offer both ATP rankings and WTA rankings points to its players, with
16-660: A maximum 500 points for the winners. On 7 August 2022, Tennis Australia announced that the ATP Cup , which was an international outdoor hard court men's team competition played in the Australian summer, would be shut down and replaced by a mixed-gender event from 2023. Thus, the first edition of the United Cup directly replaced the ATP Cup (2020–2022) on the ATP Tour calendar. The first week of
24-464: A morning and an evening session. Of the three losing teams, one with the best record up to that point becomes the fourth semifinalist. For the 2024 edition, the six group winners along with the two best runners-up of each host city advanced to the quarterfinals. There is a travel day allocated before the semifinals and final take place in Sydney. In the 2023 edition, the final took place on one day. In case
32-613: Is determined by how much sand is in the synthetic/acrylic layer placed on top of the asphalt foundation. More sand will result in a slower bounce due to more friction. Of the Grand Slam tournaments, the US Open and Australian Open currently use hard courts, and it is the predominant surface type used on the professional tour. There are numerous hardcourt maintenance methods which are commonly used to keep these facilities in top condition. Some of these include brushing, pressure washing with
40-545: The 2024 edition, each player has two singles specialists and a doubles specialist for each gender. Hardcourt Tennis hard courts are made of synthetic/acrylic layers on top of a concrete or asphalt foundation and can vary in color. These courts tend to play medium-fast to fast because there is little energy absorption by the court, as with grass courts but unlike clay courts . The ball tends to bounce high and players are able to apply many types of spin during play. Speed of rebound after tennis balls bounce on hard courts
48-427: The first day and three matches in the second day- In the 2024 edition, the three matches are held in the same day. 18 countries qualify as follows: In exchange for being the host nation, Australia is guaranteed one of the spots reserved for teams with the best combined ranking if it fails to qualify on its own. In the 2023 edition, each player had three singles specialists and a doubles specialist for each gender. In
56-413: The international team competition features a group phase, with six groups of three countries, which play each other in a round robin format. One group in each city plays all its ties in the morning sessions while the other plays in the evening sessions. In the 2023 edition, the group winners in each city play off in a city final for one of three semifinal spots. This city final is played in one day across
64-461: The tie's winner is decided after the singles matches, the mixed doubles match would not be played. In the 2023 edition, each tie consisted of five matches, with two men's singles matches, two women's singles matches, and a mixed doubles match. For the 2024 edition, each tie consists of three matches (men's singles, women's singles and mixed doubles). In the 2023 edition, each tie was split into two sessions played in different days, with two matches in
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