Lorenzo Musetti was tested Thursday, but the Italian pulled through for his country in his first match of the season.
The 20-year-old levelled Italy's United Cup tie against Brazil at 1-1 with a 6-3, 6-4 victory against Brazilian Felipe Meligeni Rodrigues Alves. Friday's action will now decide the Group E tie, with Matteo Berrettini set to open play against Thiago Monteiro in the No. 1 men's singles.
Musetti faced a spirited effort from his Brazilian opponent, whose uncle is former World No. 25 Fernando Meligeni. But in the end his creativity and consistency proved too tough for Meligeni Alves after 73 mintues.
"I'm happy to be here. We have a great team behind our back and I'm happy to get the first point and to get the first win here in Brisbane," Musetti said. "I'm sure tomorrow we will fight. It's not going to be easy for sure, but we will try our best.
Photo Credit: Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images
Earlier in the day, World No.15 Beatriz Haddad Maia gave Brazil a 1-0 lead over fifth seeds Italy after a dominant win over World No. 27 Martina Trevisan.
"We played in the middle of last year and it was three sets," Haddad Maia said. "I worked very hard to push myself to play my best tennis. I worked very hard in the pre-season to be as ready as I could today."
The Hologic WTA Tour's Most Improved Player of 2022, Haddad Maia picked up right where she left off in her breakout season. The Brazilian No.1 dominated behind her serve, winning 73 per cent of her first-serve points.
Trevisan, a semi-finalist at Roland Garros last year, struggled to find any inroads. In the face of Haddad Maia's constant baseline and return pressure, she held serve just once in the match, getting broken six times.
The one hour and 18-minute victory moved Haddad Maia to 2-0 over Trevisan, having defeated the Italian in three sets last summer in Toronto.
The 20-year-old levelled Italy's United Cup tie against Brazil at 1-1 with a 6-3, 6-4 victory against Brazilian Felipe Meligeni Rodrigues Alves. Friday's action will now decide the Group E tie, with Matteo Berrettini set to open play against Thiago Monteiro in the No. 1 men's singles.
Musetti faced a spirited effort from his Brazilian opponent, whose uncle is former World No. 25 Fernando Meligeni. But in the end his creativity and consistency proved too tough for Meligeni Alves after 73 mintues.
"I'm happy to be here. We have a great team behind our back and I'm happy to get the first point and to get the first win here in Brisbane," Musetti said. "I'm sure tomorrow we will fight. It's not going to be easy for sure, but we will try our best.
Photo Credit: Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images
Earlier in the day, World No.15 Beatriz Haddad Maia gave Brazil a 1-0 lead over fifth seeds Italy after a dominant win over World No. 27 Martina Trevisan.
"We played in the middle of last year and it was three sets," Haddad Maia said. "I worked very hard to push myself to play my best tennis. I worked very hard in the pre-season to be as ready as I could today."
The Hologic WTA Tour's Most Improved Player of 2022, Haddad Maia picked up right where she left off in her breakout season. The Brazilian No.1 dominated behind her serve, winning 73 per cent of her first-serve points.
Trevisan, a semi-finalist at Roland Garros last year, struggled to find any inroads. In the face of Haddad Maia's constant baseline and return pressure, she held serve just once in the match, getting broken six times.
The one hour and 18-minute victory moved Haddad Maia to 2-0 over Trevisan, having defeated the Italian in three sets last summer in Toronto.