PERTH, Australia — Monica Seles returned to the Hopman Cup after a 10-year absence Monday, leading the United States to a 3-0 win over Slovakia in the mixed-teams tournament.
Seles, who played for Yougoslavia in 1991, became the first player to represent two countries in this event. She began the day with a 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 win over Karina Habsudova. Jan-Michael Gambill defeated Dominik Hrbaty 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, and in mixed double, Seles-Gambill beat Habsudova-Hrbaty 4-6, 6-2, 7-6 (7-4).
The Americans, seeded third, are in Group B with Slovakia, Russia and Belgium.
Seles, an American citizen, started slowly, struggling to find her range, and faced three break points to go down 3-0 before staging a comeback. Then at 1-3, she won 16 of the next 17 points to go up 5-3.
I was very flat coming out,'' Seles said.Being 3-0 down immediately would have made a huge difference to the match. I couldn’t find my rhythm at all.”
In the evening session, a Marat Safin-led Russia played qualifiers Belgium.