SmashDebate: who would win a mixed Laver Cup?

There’s no question about it: The Laver Cup is a smash hit. In fact, it’s so good that it got us thinking: who would win – between Team World or Team Europe – if the event also included the six best women from each respective region?

It started off as a hypothetical, good-natured discussion between writers at Tennismash HQ – but because we’re an opinionated bunch of tennis nuts with way too much time on our hands, the gloves came off pretty quickly.

So, let’s debate! The official question: if every player on tour was healthy and we had a Laver Cup-style event with nine men’s and women’s singles and three doubles and mixed doubles, who would win and why?

RELATED: 16 best moments from the Laver Cup, ranked

Briscomb: Team World

First, let me pick my team.

Women
Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Johanna Konta (Brexit!), Madison Keys, Sloane Stephens, Daria Gavrilova

Men
Andy Murray (Brexit!), Kei Nishikori, Milos Raonic, Juan Martin del Potro, Nick Kygios, Jack Sock (sorry Kevin Anderson…)

Coaches
John McEnroe and Chris Evert

Team Serena FTW! The GOAT undoubtedly wins all her singles. Venus is a combined 16-5 against all the best women in the game right now so I think I’ve got an edge there, too. And in doubles, both sisters have been ranked No.1 on multiple occasions with 14 Grand Slam doubles titles. SloKeys, my other dynamic American duo, would provide very valuable off-court banter and gel perfectly with Sock and Kyrgios in mixed doubles. Konta is a solid singles option and Dasha squeezes in for additional banter, team chemistry and to provide a spark off the bench.

A healthy Andy Murray is probably the best or second-best player in the game right now and Nishikori and Raonic have shown they can hold their own against the big dogs. Delpo would be my secret weapon against Fedal. But I can’t argue this lineup will struggle on the men’s side; when three players from the opposing team combine for 47 Grand Slams it’s always going to be hard – luckily, that’s why I have Serena.

Trollope: Team Europe

Oh hi Bede!

First of all, it must be said that after the rip-roaring success of the Laver Cup over the weekend, imagine bolstering it further with women as well? It could extend longer – maybe a week? – and with such a feast of singles, doubles and mixed matches, it would be quite the spectacle.

Nice team! Here’s mine:

Women
Garbine Muguruza, Karolina Pliskova, Elina Svitolina, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Petra Kvitova, Maria Sharapova

Men
Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Stan Wawrinka, Alexander Zverev, Dominic Thiem

Captains
Bjorn Borg and Martina Navratilova

Can I just say – how good is my team? I had a hard time with the women, leaving out Simona Halep and Caroline Wozniacki – two great players! – in favour of the Grand Slam winning experience of Kuznetsova and Kvitova. Kuznetsova is a fabulous doubles players as well as singles, while as soon as Kvitova competes indoors, she’s almost unstoppable. Muguruza and Pliskova are also handy doubles players if they need to be called upon for that.

Sharapova? Yes, she’s Team Europe, as much as a Russian-born, American-based player can be, and especially if you’re claiming soon-to-be-non-Europeans Murray and Konta. Ah, the geopolitical times we live in …

As for your assertion about Murray – have you seen then men in my Team Europe?? Murray, when healthy, is the fourth-best player in the game, behind the towering trio of Federer, Nadal and Djokovic. Throw in the big-match chops of Wawrinka, the youthful firepower of Zverev and a workhorse like Thiem – who could be called upon for any discipline – and it’s a versatile, intimidating line-up.

My 12 players have a collective total of 61 Grand Slam singles titles. What say you?

RELATED: Federer clinches Laver Cup victory for Team Europe

Briscomb: It’s one helluva scary team, but a champion team will always beat a team full of champions.

So with that in mind, I say where’s the team chemistry!? I’m not sure if any of your women are actually friends with each other, and if they are it’s not close to my fun team of sisters and partygoers. And any team chemistry they do have would be wiped out by Maria Sharapova, a self-proclaimed outcast. I think listening to Gilles Muller read me a 1700-page novel on the French revolution might be more enjoyable and less awkward than hanging out with that group!

Further, two’s company but threes a crowd, and I feel like the inclusion of Djokovic would lead to some awkward conversations. Picture this, it’s the deciding doubles match on Day 3 and Team Europe must pick two men to break the tie. How would that conversation go?

Borg: Okay guys, great job.
Nadal: Yes, ombellible, no?
Borg: Now I just need my two best players to finish this off for me.
Federer: Okay I’m in.
Nadal/Djokovic: Okay me t–oh…

I’m sorry but you can have too much of a good thing, and three GOATs would definitely lead to an ego clash. And if you think Team Europe’s coaches are going to solve your team’s chemistry issues, think again. Did you see Bjorn Borg last weekend? I don’t think he said a word! Meanwhile, my boy Mac is out here dancing whenever his players win a point.

Trollope: Does a champion team always beat a team full of champions?

We saw all the chemistry thought possible when Team World played in Prague on the weekend. Best mates Kyrgios and Sock teamed up, there were a raft of US Davis Cup teammates in Sock, Isner and Querrey, plus those incredible team celebrations and moves on the sidelines.

Team Europe won anyway. Because their playing list was superior.

I did think about the issue of chemistry, especially on the women’s side. But I figured Sharapova has navigated Fed Cup play on-and-off for years – playing for a nation whose players have never completed embraced her – and seems to have done quite well. And Russia has benefitted from her presence when she has played.

For all the importance of chemistry, these athletes are too professional to put an apparent lack of friendship ahead of the ultimate goal of team glory. Teams in tennis are thrown together all the time – Olympic squads, Davis and Fed Cup groups – and they’re not always full of players who have great relationships. It helps, sure, but it’s not essential.

And as for too much of a good thing on the men’s side? I’d say that’s a nice problem to have. Remember the fabled Australian Davis Cup team of 1973, loaded with stars like Laver, Newcombe and Rosewall? The captain had to make a tough decision – he went with Laver and Newcombe over Rosewall in doubles. Australia won the final 5-0, and I’m pretty sure Rosewall would have been happy to be a part of that champion team regardless.

If it came down to a deciding doubles match, and only two players could be picked, I’d be going with the gold-medal winning combination of Federer and Wawrinka anyway – singles GOATs do not necessarily make the greatest doubles players.

Briscomb: Yes Team Europe won but it should never have been that close – five of their six players were ranked inside the top 10 (compared to Team World’s zero, who also had two players ranked outside the top 50) and it still took the final match of Day 3 to dispense of the Worlders. In fact, if the weekend’s events taught us anything, it’s to never count out a tight-knit group.

When both sides are comprised of top-15 players team chemistry will indeed matter more than you think. With nine of Team World’s players coming from three countries, my side offers versatility and camaraderie that yours simply can’t match. Williams and Williams. Keys and Stephens. Williams and Stephens. Kyrgios and Sock. Murray and Konta. Kyrgios and Gavrilova. Nishikori and Rao….never mind about that one.

Team World, led by its fearless leader Serena Williams, would defeat Team Europe’s awkward fit of historical talent.

Trollope: Hmm. Camaraderie between Williams and Stephens? I’ll bet Serena hasn’t forgotten Stephens’ outburst in ESPN magazine …

Yes, your team may have superior chemistry. But I just can’t help feeling that you’re putting too much emphasis on it. Especially when the Laver Cup’s format prioritises singles so heavily over doubles. At the weekend, doubles made up just 25% of the schedule, and even under this proposed new format, singles still features far more heavily in the program.

Chemistry is of little relevance then when my singles players are whipping your team-members’ butts …

That aside, I think this version of the competition could be an absolute winner for fans and players. With the inaugural edition of the Laver Cup so exciting and successful, the future looks bright for this emerging event.