Norrie & Boulter give GB winning start at United Cup

Cameron Norrie had lost his past nine matches against opponents ranked inside the world's top 20

Cameron Norrie and Katie Boulter ensured Great Britain made a winning start at the United Cup with victory over hosts Australia in Perth.

Boulter then secured her nation's opening win with a match to spare by beating Ajla Tomljanovic 6-2 6-4.

GB face the United States - winners of the inaugural tournament in January - in their final Group C match on Sunday.

World number 18 Norrie, 28, dominated the decisive tie-break to earn a hard-fought win over the 12th-ranked De Minaur after two hours 23 minutes - his first victory over a top-20 opponent in his past 10 attempts.

Boulter, Britain's top-ranked women's player, took charge from the outset against Tomljanovic, racing into a 4-0 first-set lead on her way to an assured straight-set win which gave GB an unassailable 2-0 advantage.

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Boulter and team-mate Neal Skupski face Storm Hunter and Matthew Ebden in the concluding mixed doubles later on Friday as they aim to strengthen their bid to progress by completing a clean sweep.

GB reached the quarter-finals of the tournament's inaugural edition in January, where they were beaten by eventual winners - and upcoming opponents - the USA.

At the United Cup, which takes place from 29 December to 7 January, countries compete in a round-robin format across six groups of three.

The six group winners, plus the best-performing runner-up in the two host cities Perth and Sydney, advance to the quarter-finals.

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