World No. 1 Angelique Kerber shook off a slow start to defeat Italian veteran Francesca Schiavone 4-6, 6-0, 6-4 Tuesday to reach the second round of the WTA tournament in Monterrey, Mexico. Kerber, runner-up in Monterrey in 2013, was back at the tournament after a three-year absence. The German, who regained the world number one ranking in March with American Serena Williams idled by injury, needed an hour and 40 minutes to get past Schiavone, the 36-year-old who has said this will be her last season on tour. Schiavone raced to a 3-0 lead in the opening set before Kerber found a way into the match, regaining a break before Schiavone broke again and served out the set. Kerber dominated the second set, breaking Schiavone three times and dropping just three points on her own serve. Kerber didn't face a break point in the final frame as she advanced to a second-round match against Luxembourg's Mandy Minella, a 7-6 (7/3), 6-3 winner over Bulgarian Elitsa Kostova. Djokovic seeks Davis Cup spark Novak Djokovic hopes the spark he has been lacking so far this year will return as he pulls on his Serbia shirt for this weekend's Davis Cup quarterfinal against Spain in Belgrade. The former world number one's appearance in his home city is one of several intriguing plots as the team competition reaches the business end with four hard-to-call ties. Nick Kyrgios will be leading Australia's charge when Lleyton Hewitt's side host the US in a clash of Davis Cup heavyweights, Belgium take on Italy while Britain, without the injured world No. 1 Andy Murray, is away in France. Since opening the year by winning the Doha title, world No. 2 Djokovic has managed only six victories, and his ATP Race points total of 475 looks tiny compared with the 4,045 already amassed by a resurgent Roger Federer. An early defeat by 117th-ranked Denis Istomin at the Australian Open was followed by two defeats by Kyrgios in Acapulco and Indian Wells. He then withdrew before the start of last week's Miami Open citing an elbow injury. That is why all eyes will be on the 12-time Grand Slam champion on the indoor hardcourt in the Serbian capital. Spain will offer a formidable test even without world number five Rafael Nadal. World No. 19 Pablo Carreno Busta has been one of the form players on the ATP Tour this year and will be supported by 24th-ranked Albert Ramos-Vinolas. The weekend will kick off in Brisbane where the two most successful nations in Davis Cup history clash for a 47th time. Australia is seeking a semifinal spot for only the second time in 11 years and much will depend on the form of Kyrgios. With the US boasting a team of in-form Jack Sock, John Isner, Sam Querrey and Steve Johnson, Hewitt will be banking on two wins from the mercurial Kyrgios as his second singles player is the inexperienced world No. 79 Jordan Thompson. Britain faces a tough assignment without Murray on the clay in Rouen where Kyle Edmund and Dan Evans will be trying to fill his sizeable shoes against a host nation missing Jo-Wilfried Tsonga but led by 17th-ranked Lucas Pouille. Belgium, the only won of the quarter-finalists never to have lifted the trophy stunned Germany in Frankfurt without David Goffin in round one but will have their top player back for the home clash with Italy in Charleroi. — Agencies
