Mertens Outlasts Mboko in Tense United Cup Battle
Elise Mertens summoned her veteran poise to defeat Victoria Mboko 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, clinching Belgium’s upset over Canada at the United Cup. With mixed doubles deciding the quarterfinal fate, the pressure cooker in Perth intensified every rally.
On the hard courts of Perth during the United Cup on January 6, 2026, Elise Mertens stepped into a matchup that blended raw talent with hard-earned savvy. The Belgian, fresh from rallying past China’s Zhu Lin earlier in the week, faced 19-year-old Victoria Mboko, whose 15 three-set wins in 2025 had earned her WTA Newcomer of the Year honors. Over two hours and five minutes, Mertens navigated the Canadian’s aggressive bursts with steady depth, securing a 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 victory that followed Zizou Bergs’ 6-4, 6-2 stunner over ATP World No. 5 Felix Auger-Aliassime. This sweep put Belgium on the edge of the Group B quarterfinals, though the mixed doubles loomed as the ultimate decider.
Mertens’ serve anchored her early dominance, holding at love through her first four games and breaking Mboko to love in the sixth with a deep inside-out forehand that forced an error. The Perth surface, with its medium pace and true bounce, rewarded her heavy topspin, allowing her to control rallies from the baseline while Mboko’s flat shots occasionally skimmed the lines but lacked consistent margin. As the crowd’s murmurs built with each hold, the Belgian’s focus sharpened, turning the tie’s weight into fuel rather than friction.
“I’m absolutely pumped ... I’m very happy with the point for Belgium,” Mertens said. “Also well-played to my opponent. She’s up and coming, she’s really young -- she’s more than 10 years younger than me! I’m most proud of how I [started] the beginning of the third set. I really wanted to get that point, and of course, I had the team behind me. I got a little bit of experience already, but of course you always feel a little bit nervous. That’s the game, tennis, a lot of emotions, but I’m very pleased about [the win].”
Youth fights back with sharp angles
Mboko clawed into the second set, leveling at 3-6 by stepping inside the baseline on returns and unleashing down-the-line passes that wrong-footed Mertens during a 1–2 pattern exchange. Her fighting spirit, forged in those marathon 2025 battles, kept the Canadian in contention, drawing cheers from the expat supporters as she extended rallies with crosscourt backhands. Yet the pressure of the tie began to show, her aggressive net rushes met by Mertens’ slice approaches that skidded low on the hard courts.
In the decider, Mertens erased a 30-0 deficit in the fourth game, breaking with a crosscourt backhand winner that sealed the shift. She won 93% of points behind her first serve overall, varying placements to disrupt Mboko’s rhythm—no break chances emerged for the teen in that set. The Belgian’s adjustments, mixing flat inside-in forehands with underspin slices, exposed the subtle gaps in Mboko’s positioning, turning youthful fire into contained embers.
Bergs delivers historic men’s breakthrough
Before Mertens took the court, Bergs rebounded from his season-opening loss to China’s Zhang Zhizhen, saving all five break points against Auger-Aliassime in a 1-hour-28-minute clinic. The 26-year-old Belgian marked his second career top-10 win—after Andrey Rublev in Miami 10 months earlier—with steady baseline play, using one–two serves to set up inside-out forehands that neutralized the Canadian’s power. Auger-Aliassime, riding high from his 2025 US Open semifinal and Nitto ATP Finals run, couldn’t convert his earlier sharpness from beating Zhang, his kick serves bouncing high but met by Bergs’ low returns.
A Belgian man had never previously earned a win at the United Cup, making Bergs’ effort a milestone that electrified the Perth arena. He reflected on the team’s resilience, noting how the format’s demands kept focus sharp amid the day’s multiple rubbers. As the crowd’s energy peaked with his straight-sets hold, Belgium’s path forward gained momentum, blending individual grit with collective drive.
“Really happy with the performance. I think this shows also our strength we have. We can fall down, but we will get back up and try to be better [than] we were the day before,” Bergs said. “This is what we do, and I’m also very thankful to have that team around me.” He added, “I actually forgot this was my second Top-10 win, so that’s really huge, actually, especially with a convincing way of playing. I just looked at it as a match. This is a little different format, so we’re still down. We still have to win a lot of matches today, so that was more the focus and today I just had to get the job done.”
Mixed doubles tests team resolve
With the singles secured, Belgium needs the mixed doubles sweep to advance, flipping the Group B math against a Canadian side bolstered by Auger-Aliassime’s pedigree—check the United Cup: Scores | Standings for updates. The Perth hard courts, favoring consistency over outright speed, set the stage for tactical pairings where poaches and lobs could exploit fatigue from the earlier exertions. Mertens’ composure, honed through Grand Slam pressures, paired with Bergs’ newfound confidence, positions the underdogs to sustain their edge.
Mboko’s near-miss adds to her growth arc, her 2025 momentum undimmed despite the decider’s sting, while Auger-Aliassime’s uncharacteristic lapses highlight how team events amplify scouting and adaptation. As the rubber approaches, the tie’s emotional undercurrents—nerves channeled into execution—promise a finale where Belgium’s unity could rewrite their United Cup story. The early 2026 stakes in Perth underscore how these battles forge not just results, but sharper contenders for the Australian swing ahead.
