United Cup
Auger-Aliassime & Mboko ‘very excited’ for United Cup after visit with kangaroos and koalas
Team China also spends time at the Sydney Zoo
December 31, 2025
Felix Auger-Aliassime and Victoria Mboko take a selfie with a koala at Sydney Zoo on Wednesday.
By ATP staff
Team Canada and Team China took time to explore Sydney on Wednesday before the start of the United Cup, visiting the Sydney Zoo where they interacted with kangaroos and koalas.
The Canadians in attendance were Auger-Aliassime, rising WTA star Victoria Mboko, Alexis Galarneau and Kayla Cross. A year ago, Mboko was outside the Top 300 in the PIF WTA Rankings. She goes to the United Cup as number 18 in the world.
“I’m very excited. This is my first time playing such an event and playing the whole swing of Australia, so there are a lot of new experiences and so many new things coming,” Mboko said. “I’m looking forward to playing United Cup. It’s a really fun event and to be here with Felix and the team is really great.”
Auger-Aliassime is flying higher than ever at No. 5 in the PIF ATP Rankings. The Canadian, winner of 50 matches during the 2025 season, will look to make a fast start to the new year Down Under. He serves as captain of Team Canada.
“I have great memories of playing the last few team events here in Australia,” Auger-Aliassime said. “We actually won with our team [the ATP Cup] a few years ago in Sydney, so it would be nice to get another win.”
Felix Auger-Aliassime” style=”width:100%;” src=”https://www.atptour.com/-/media/images/news/2025/12/31/05/49/auger-aliassime-united-cup-2026-kangaroo.jpg”>
The Team China members who visited the Sydney Zoo were former WTA No. 31 Zhu Lin, Zhang Zhizhen (second from right), Te Rigele (far right), Wang Aoran (far left) and captain Wu Di (second from left).
Zhang and Zhu are leading the way for the Chinese. Zhang has played in each of the last two seasons in the United Cups, scoring 1-2 singles each time. He is proud to represent his country on the world stage.
“This is always different. That’s why United Cup is a little different [from] other tournaments,” said Zhang. “You have to fight for every point, even if you get another point or another set, you help your team.”
The action in Sydney starts on January 3. Click here to see who is competing in the mixed team event.
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