Perth, Dec 31: French Open champion Li Na recovered from a service break down in the final set to beat Marion Bartoli 2-6, 6-2, 6-4 and give China a 1-0 lead over France after Saturday's opening match of the Hopman Cup mixed teams tournament.
Bartoli broke Li's serve in the fifth game of the final set to take a 3-2 lead, but Li broke back in the eighth game to level the set at 4-4 and took the match by breaking Bartoli in the final game.
Wu Di will play Richard Gasquet in the men's singles ahead of a mixed doubles match.
It was the only match Saturday. Australia plays Spain on Sunday, while Czech Republic plays Bulgaria and the United States takes on Denmark on Monday.
