Spain held off a spirited effort from Brazil to win 2-1 in the opening tie at the United Cup in Perth. Led by Sara Sorribes Tormo and Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, the Spanish squad sealed the win by defeating Beatriz Haddad Maia and Marcelo Melo 6-4, 7-5 in the decisive mixed-doubles match.

In a tight match inside the RAC Arena in Perth, Davidovich Fokina and Sorribes Tormo recovered from squandering a break advantage in the second set, composing themselves to reel off the final three games to triumph in 1 hour and 37 minutes.

The victory moves Spain to 1-0 in Group A and drops Brazil to 0-1. Brazil will face top-seeded Poland on Saturday.

Earlier in the day, Brazil's Haddad Maia prevailed in the first Hologic WTA Tour match of the new season, defeating Sorribes Tormo 7-6(1), 6-2. The win leveled the tie at 1-1, after Spain's Davidovich Fokina kickstarted his season with a comfortable win over Thiago Seyboth Wild 6-4, 6-0.

In their most recent previous meeting, Haddad Maia needed 3 hours and 51 minutes to outlast Sorribes Tormo in the fourth round of last year's Roland Garros, which was 2023's longest WTA match.

Must See

However, Haddad Maia was much more straightforward in Perth, Australia on Friday, taking 2 hours and 6 minutes to notch the victory and improve to 4-2 lifetime over 48th-ranked Sorribes Tormo. Haddad Maia was a perfect 5-for-5 on break points in the encounter.

Haddad Maia relied on her powerful lefty forehand to overcome the superb footspeed of Sorribes Tormo and sweep through the tiebreak at the end of a closely-matched first set.

The 27-year-old Brazilian was a point away from falling behind 3-0 in the second set, but she reeled off six games in a row from there to collect the straight-sets win.

Day 2 at the United Cup will see play across both Perth and Sydney. In Perth, Marketa Vondrousova leads the Czech Republic against Zheng Qinwen's Chinese side, followed by Iga Swiatek's Poland taking on Brazil. 

In Sydney, the Netherlands take on Norway, followed by Angelique Kerber's return to competition, as Germany faces Italy. 

Each tie consists of three rubbers: one men’s singles, one women’s singles and one mixed doubles. There are 18 countries in the mixed-teams event, with six groups of three teams.