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The PR opportunities at United Cup, as at the Hopman Cup before it, are pretty much the same every year.
In Perth, it’s Rott Nest Island and the search for the perfect quokka selfie.
The players – including Naomi Osaka and Emma Raducanu (Grand Slam champions both although it’s been a minute), did some interviews and said all the good things.
(Rights-free footage supplied by Tennis Australia).
But back to the selfie quest shich, let’s be frank, will never be topped by the iconic Federer effort a few years ago.
It was partly because Federer looked like he just fell off the couch. But also it was a tremendous selfie. Even Team Great Britain player Billy Harris mentioned it, first off, when he and his team made their pilgrimage there Wednesday.
On this particular day, there were bugs galore which meant they were mostly practicing another Aussie tradition: The Aussie salute.
Credit due to Alexander Zverev’s girlfriend Sophia Thomalia. She rocked it a year ago.
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But while Harris will likely be crowned the “quokka selfie winner” on a day that the baby versions weren’t super-cooperative, he also got off the line of the day on this media outing, with this quip to why the quokka was smiling.
“He’s just sniffing his own poo, that’s what he’s doing,” said Harris, a truth-teller.
His promotion to replace Jack Draper as the No. 1 man on Team Great Britain should be good stuff on the quotes side.
As for Team Japan, No. 1 man Shintaro Mochizuki, who is far less known that his illustrious teammate Naomi Osaka, was also a revelation.
Mochizuki, who is still just 22 but has already had a star-crossed career, is the No. 1 Japanese male player with his long-awaited ascension to the top 100 in November.
Mochizuki won junior Wimbledon in 2019, at age 16, and then became the No. 1 junior player in the world. No. 2 at the time was Holger Rune, and No. 3 was Lorenzo Musetti – both of whom quickly made the top 10. But for him, it’s been a big struggle.
What’s most impressive about him was his command of English. Like his accomplished countryman Kei Nishikori, Mochizuki ended up at the IMG Academy in Florida on a scholarship, arriving there at age 13 speaking … not a word.
But he spent five years there, and listen to him go now.
For Emma Raducanu and Naomi Osaka (who hadn’t been to Perth since playing Hopman Cup all the way back in 2017), it was business as usual.
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