Roger Federer to face Serena Williams in Mixed Doubles action on New Year's Day

Arjun
Roger Federer and Belinda Bencic with the 2018 Hopman Cup
Roger Federer and Belinda Bencic with the 2018 Hopman Cup

Tennis fans around the world will be treated to a one of a kind match on New Year's day. What better way to kick off the 2019 tennis season than a match involving the 'Two GOATS'.

37-year old Serena Williams will be looking to start the 2019 season on a fresh note and will play her first competitive match since the controversial 2018 US Open Final. Serena will team-up with 20-year old Francis Tiafoe to challenge the winners of the 2018 Hopman Cup - Roger Federer and Belinda Bencic. Serena has previously won the Hopman Cup in 2003 and 2008 with James Blake and Mardy Fish respectively.

The 31st edition of the Hopman Cup - an event which usually doesn't attract much eyeballs starts off on 29th December and concludes on 5th January. There is much excitement among the tennis fans and the event will surely be the cynosure of all eyes.

This year's event is going to be a star-studded affair with the likes of Angelique Kerber, Alexander Zverev, Garbine Muguruza, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Ashleigh Barty also in the mix.

Serena Williams will be making her 5th appearance at the Hopman Cup. "The Aussie fans are always so warm and supportive and the Hopman Cup has always given me a great start to the season, especially ahead of the Australian Open," said Williams.

The format of the Hopman Cup is as follows: Teams of 2 each belonging to eight nations are split into two groups, with teams facing each other in sessions that consist of a men's and women's singles match and a mixed doubles match. Each team plays the other three in their group in a round-robin format, and the top teams in each group face-off against each other in the final to be played on 5th January.

Group A consists of France, Spain, Germany and hosts Australia. Group B features USA, Switzerland, Greece and Great Britain. The teams are as follows:

Group A

Australia - Matt Ebden and Ashleigh Barty

Germany - Alexander Zverev and Angelique Kerber

France - Lucas Pouille and Alize Cornet

Spain - David Ferrer and Garbine Muguruza

Group B

Greece - Stefanos Tsitsipas and Maria Sakkari

Great Britain - Cameron Norrie and Katie Boulter

USA - Frances Tiafoe and Serena Williams

Switzerland - Roger Federer and Belinda Bencic

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