Hopman Cup, Lucia Bronzetti puts Italy ahead with Croatia

In the opening match of the Hopman Cup 2025 between Italy and Croatia, being played on a concrete court at the Fiera del Levante in Bari, Lucia Bronzetti, world number 64, beat Donna Vekic, number 52, on a super tie-break with a score of 6-3 4-6 10-1 in just over an hour and three quarters of play.

Lucia flew out to a 4-0 lead in the first set, then in the sixth game lost one of her two break leads, allowing her opponent to close in again at 4-3, but in the ninth game she broke her serve again forfeiting the first partial.

At the beginning of the second set it is Vekic’s turn to have two beak leads at 3-0, soon after she loses one of the two, then at 4-2 she realigns, then gives up one serve again but the remaining break lead she keeps until the conclusion of the set.

The super tie-break is finally dominated by Bronzetti, who loses only one point, the sixth, after sprinting 5-0, and then makes it five more in a row. The men’s singles will feature Flavio Cobolli, a fresh top 20 favorite over Duje Ajdukovic, number 177 vs. number 19.

Lucia Bronzetti replaced in the competition at the last moment Jasmine Paolini, who forfeited due to a knee problem.