Despite being eliminated in the group stage, the Chinese team still outperformed the Japanese team, becoming the best-performing Asian team in the United Cup.

Time flies, and the Chinese team has now competed in the United Cup three times. So, how has our close neighbor Japan fared in the United Cup? Which team has shown better performance, China or Japan? Today, this article will take you through the details. The inaugural United Cup started in 2023. Since the United Cup selects teams based on the combined rankings of each country's top male and female singles players, China was not eligible that year because only Zhang Zhizhen had entered the top 100 in men's tennis. Similarly, Japan also missed out due to insufficient rankings. Among Asian teams, only Kazakhstan participated, but they were eliminated early in the group stage.

In 2023, Zheng Qinwen won two tour titles and reached the final of the small year-end championship held in Zhuhai. Zhang Zhizhen made it twice to the round of 32 in Grand Slams and reached the quarterfinals of a Masters event. Their outstanding performances qualified China for the 2024 United Cup. In contrast, Japan still could not participate due to rankings. China became the only Asian team in the tournament that year, defeating the Czech Republic in the group stage and taking a point from Serbia, becoming the first Asian team to advance to the United Cup quarterfinals. From then on, Chinese tennis began to gradually surpass Japanese tennis.

In 2024, Zheng Qinwen reached finals in WTA 1000 events, Grand Slams, and the year-end championships, while Zhang Zhizhen made it to his first career tour final. Thanks to their solid performances, China secured a spot in the 2025 United Cup. Unlike before, although Japan still did not participate, Kazakhstan's presence meant China was no longer the sole Asian representative. In this tournament, China defeated Brazil and took a set from Germany, advancing once again to the quarterfinals.

Kazakhstan, on the other hand, won against Greece and Spain in the group stage and also advanced to the quarterfinals. Notably, this was Kazakhstan’s first time reaching the United Cup quarterfinals. In the quarterfinals, China was swept by the United States, while Kazakhstan defeated Germany to reach the semifinals. Although Kazakhstan was decisively beaten by Poland in the semifinals, they still set the best record for an Asian team in the United Cup.

Although Chinese players only reached one tour final in the 2025 season, they still secured a place in the 2026 United Cup thanks to protected rankings held by Zhang Zhizhen and Zhu Lin. Meanwhile, the long-absent Japanese team qualified for the 2026 United Cup based on strong performances from Naomi Osaka and Shintaro Mochizuki in 2025. Having been overtaken by China, Japan hopes to achieve better results in the tournament and surpass China’s record.

However, in the first round of the group stage, Japan surprisingly lost all three matches against the Greek team led by Tsitsipas. Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka was stunned by Sakari in a major upset. Given the limited strength of other Japanese players, their defeats were understandable. In contrast, although Zhu Lin was defeated soundly, Zhang Zhizhen staged a comeback to beat Belgium’s Belkhassine, keeping China’s hopes alive. In mixed doubles, despite losing the first set, Zhang and Zhu rallied to win the next two sets and secured China’s first victory in the United Cup group stage once again.

Although China suffered a heavy loss to Canada in the second round and failed to add more wins, Japan also could not gain any advantage against the British team, managing only one win by Naomi Osaka and exiting the group stage with two consecutive losses. Despite also being eliminated, China had more wins than Japan and remained the best-performing Asian team in the United Cup.

Moreover, at the tour events held this week, the number of Chinese participants far exceeded that of Japanese players, reflecting the steady rise of Chinese tennis. It is believed that Chinese players will achieve good results in the 2026 season. That wraps up this tennis topic for now; see you next time.(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Yixin Jushi)