PERTH, Australia (AP) — Americans Monica Seles and Jan-Michael Gambill swept France 3-0 in the Hopman Cup team tennis event Monday and revealed identical wishes for 2002 — to stay healthy and play a full season.
The top-seeded United States didn’t drop a set to Virginie Razzano and Arnaud Clement of unseeded France in its opening Group A match at the Burswood Dome.
Seles, a crowd favorite in Perth who won the event for Yugoslavia in 1991, defeated Razzano 6-3, 6-4. After the match, she said she felt her foot injury which marred 2001 was behind her.
“I have zero pain,” she said.
Gambill beat Clement 6-4, 6-4 before Seles and Gambill won the mixed doubles 6-1, 6-4.
After injury-plagued seasons this year, Seles and Gambill are desperate for any change of routine that may keep their troublesome injuries at bay.
For Gambill that may mean employing a full-time trainer, while for Seles it was a 4 a.m. swim with wild dolphins in a coastal city 30 minutes south of Perth.
“It was one of the most magical experiences of my life, getting to swim with them in the wild was unbelievable,” Seles said.
Gambill has been in training for only two weeks and started serving only six days ago after a season-long arm injury.
I have to look after it, my resolution for New Year's is to keep myself injury-free,'' he said.To tell the truth I’m surprised at how well I played today. To serve as well as I did out there is great.”
Australia, the second seeds and in Group B, beat defending champions Switzerland 3-0 on Sunday, while Spain defeated Argentina 3-0.
Belgium takes on Italy and Spain plays Switzerland on Tuesday.
The winners of each group play in the final on Saturday.