Stan Wawrinka starts the final season of his great career at the United Cup alongside Belinda Bencic. He is at peace with his decision.
02.01.2026, 08:04
SDA
Perth has a special significance for Belinda Bencic, but for Stan Wawrinka the metropolis on the Pacific Ocean is new territory. The 40-year-old from Vaud is in Perth for the first time for the United Cup mixed competition and is one of the big attractions there. Although, or perhaps precisely because, his career is finally coming to an end.
"I'm glad that I have another year and hope to get a few good results and finish on a good note," explains the three-time Grand Slam champion after arriving in Australia. At number 157, Wawrinka is still the best Swiss player in the ATP rankings despite his age. But he wants to move up again. "I'm planning a mix of ATP and Challenger tournaments," he reveals. "I want to play the whole year, including the big tournaments. But that depends on the ranking. Of course, the goal is to return to the top 100."
Passion unbroken
His current ranking is not enough to qualify for the Australian Open, for example, but three wildcards are still available. However, Wawrinka has not signed up for the qualifiers in Melbourne and will be playing at the ATP tournament in Auckland, New Zealand, in the week before the first Grand Slam tournament of the year.
The 2008 double Olympic champion struggled for a long time with his decision to hang up his racket at the end of this season, but is now at peace with it. "The passion for tennis is unbroken, I will certainly miss that. But I've had a good career," he said with a touch of crass understatement.
Bencic wins twice in Perth
Thanks to Belinda Bencic, number 11 in the WTA rankings, Switzerland secured their place in the 18-team United Cup in Sydney and Perth. The 2021 Olympic champion has fond memories of its predecessor, the Hopman Cup, which she won alongside Roger Federer in Perth in 2018 and 2019. "I always look forward to coming back here," she emphasized before leaving for Australia shortly before Christmas.
In the first match of Group C, the Bencic/Wawrinka duo will face France with Léolia Jeanjean (WTA 103) and Arthur Rinderknech (ATP 29) early on Saturday morning. Their second opponents on Sunday will be the favorites Italy with world number 8 Jasmine Paolini and Flavio Cobolli (ATP 22). The quarter-finals will be reached by the group winners and the best runner-up of the three groups in Perth.
Riedi with the next comeback
The rest of the Swiss players also traditionally start the season Down Under and its surroundings. The men in particular have a lot to make up for and are hoping for an end to their recent bad luck with injuries. Leandro Riedi (ATP 179) had to have an operation on his groin after his exploit in qualifying for the round of 16 at the US Open in September, the third surgical procedure in 13 months. Jérôme Kym (ATP 187), who reached the 3rd round at the US Open, also had to end last season early. Both want to attack again in the new year, Riedi this weekend in the qualifiers in Brisbane, Kym in Hong Kong. In ten days' time, both will also be competing in the Australian Open qualifiers.
Henry Bernet (ATP 510) is tackling his first full season with the "big boys". The soon-to-be 19-year-old from Basel, who prepared with Davis Cup captain Severin Lüthi in Dubai among other places, will start the season at a Challenger tournament in New Caledonia. As the junior winner of last year's Australian Open, he is guaranteed a wildcard for the qualifiers in Melbourne.
Waltert in the main draw for the first time
In addition to Bencic, Viktorija Golubic (WTA 82) and, for the first time, Simona Waltert (WTA 87) are in the women's main draw of the Australian Open. Golubic was still training in Switzerland over the festive period and is entered in the WTA tournament in Hobart the week after next. Waltert is the top seed at the Challenger event in Canberra next week.
Rebeka Masarova (WTA 116) starts with the qualifying in Brisbane, followed by the Australian Open. Jil Teichmann (WTA 123), on the other hand, is not quite ready to return to action.
