Norway started Sunday's United Cup match against Brazil trailing 2-0. Despite World No 3 Casper Ruud keeping Norway's hopes alive, the country was unable to fight its way back.
Her opening 7-6(6), 6-4 triumph over World No 3 Jessica Pegula was a huge confidence boost for the former World No 2, who saved seven set points in the first set to win in two.
Shinikova heaped praises on captain Grigor Dimitrov for putting her up for the crucial matchup and appreciated her partner for gelling well to deliver an important result.
Evans defeated the opponent with 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 on the leaderboard in the critical match in Sydney when his nation was holding a 2-1 lead in the tie. The 32-year-old's brilliance led his team to secure an invincible 3-1 lead in the tie and grabbed the top spot in Group D. In the City Final on
Team Greece's star player Tsitsipas, though, persevered to secure victory at RAC Arena, defeating his opponent 4-6, 6-2, 7-6(4) to give his country a 2-0 lead in the Group A match.
The historic-high prize pool is a result of a record AUD 76.5 million for the Australian Open 2023 (a 3.4 per cent increase) as well as the addition of the lucrative new United Cup event.
"We thrive playing for our country, representing the green and gold. There is always a lot of passion and pride and it is a great time of the year. We are in the Aussie summer, ready to start 2023. There is no better place to be," said De Minaur.