PERTH, Australia (AP) Marion Bartoli left her opponent in tears Tuesday after a 6-0, 6-0 rout helped push France past Australia in the eight-team Hopman Cup.
Bartoli needed only 50 minutes to beat Jarmila Gajdosova, finishing off the match with her 12th ace.
I'm sorry I beat her that way but I was just focusing on my own game and not looking at the scoreboard,'' Bartoli said.She's so talented and she's a lovely lady and when I saw her in tears it was really heartbreaking. But I can't really miss a shot just for (the sake of) missing the shot.''
It was the first shutout at the Hopman Cup since Liz Smylie of Australia was beaten by the same score by Swiss opponent Manuela Maleeva-Fragniere in 1991. Smylie was doing television commentary for Tuesday's Gajdosova-Bartoli match.
Later, Richard Gasquet clinched the victory for France by beating Lleyton Hewitt 6-2, 5-7, 6-1.
The later mixed doubles match involving all four players will only help determine the final group placings.
Spain also won its second match in the competition, beating China 2-1. Spain and France play each other on Thursday, with the winner advancing to Saturday's final from Group B.
Australia and China have each lost twice.
Anabel Medina Garrigues and Fernando Verdasco of Spain were nearly perfect in mixed doubles, beating Li Na and Wu Di 6-0, 6-2 to clinch the victory over China. Verdasco beat Wu 6-3, 6-4 in singles after Li gave the Chinese a 1-0 lead with a 6-3, 6-1 win over Medina Garrigues.
Verdasco arrived in Perth after a short break following Spain's Davis Cup win in December, then beat Hewitt in his opening singles match Sunday.
On Tuesday, Verdasco took a 4-1 lead in the first set but struggled at times against the 20-year-old Wu.
I think that he's a talented player ... he has very fast hands,'' Verdasco said.I saw him practice when I was in China playing the Asian Tour last year.''
He said he and Medina Garrigues were improving gradually in mixed doubles.
We are playing every day better and against France hopefully we'll play even better,'' Verdasco saidI think after each match you know each other more and more of what is good to do and not.''
Denmark plays Bulgaria and the Czech Republic takes on the United States in Group A play Wednesday, with Denmark and the Czech Republic going for their second straight wins.