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Germany's Alexander Zverev has fought back from a set down to defeat Italian Lorenzo Sonego 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 6-4 at the United Cup.

Hot-headed Alexander Zverev has kept his cool and his racquet intact, roaring from a set down to defeat Lorenzo Sonego at the United Cup on the way to helping Germany beat Italy.

Olympic champion Zverev, famed for his on-court outbursts, threatened to explode early in the second set of his near three-hour long thriller at Sydney's Ken Rosewall Arena on Saturday night.

The 26-year-old German let out grunts of disgust and scraped his racquet along the ground as Sonego continued to test his patience after winning a tiebreak in the first set.

But rather than blow up in rage, world No.7 Zverev composed himself, dug deep and roared back to win the men's singles rubber 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 6-4.

"That being my first match of the season, I can't complain," Zverev said.

"I'm trying to fight for every point and that first set slipped away but I just had to find a way back into the match."

Germany's Angelique Kerber, who was marking her return to competition after giving birth to her first child in February, was defeated 6-4 7-5 by Jasmine Paolini.

"Before the match I had no idea how I'd feel, but it feels good to be back and have that fire inside of me," three-time grand slam winner Kerber said.

And her return ended in triumph as she paired up with Zverev in the deciding mixed doubles tie, defeating Angelica Moratelli and Sonego 6-3 6-0 to wrap up a 2-1 win for Germany.

"It was a special day for me," the 35-year-old said after the doubles win.

In Perth, meanwhile, Polish world No. 1 Iga Swiatek began her season with a bang, swatting Beatriz Haddad Maia 6-2 6-2 to help her side to victory in a 3-0 sweep over Brazil.

Earlier at RAC Arena, rising star Zheng Qinwen vowed to not get carried away with herself after toppling Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova 6-1 2-6 6-1.

The 21-year-old Zheng helped China towards a 3-0 victory over the Czech Republic, teaming up with Zhizhen Zhang to defeat Vondrousova and Jiri Lehecka in the mixed doubles 6-1 6-2.

Zhang had come from a set down to defeat Lehecka 5-7 6-3 6-4 earlier on in the men's singles rubber.

But it was Zheng's assured singles triumph which set China on their way to top spot in Group E that left her gracefully batting away questions about how far she could go in 2024.

Zheng, ranked world No.15, has been touted as a potential star of the future and the scalp of Vondrousova will only add fuel to the fire.

"It's a normal match for me, I need to perform in my tennis and it doesn't matter who I face, it's about what I did," Zheng said.

"In 2023, people asked me my goals and I said I'm going to make the top 10.

"One year has passed, I'm still not there yet so I will keep that goal ... let's see if I can make it."

Elsewhere on Saturday, the Netherlands proved too strong for a Norway side boasting three-time grand slam finalist Casper Ruud, with the Dutch claiming a 2-1 win in their maiden United Cup tie in Sydney. .

Ruud, runner-up at the 2023 French Open, defeated Tallon Griekspoor 6-3 6-4 in the men's singles but was unable to replicate his feats in the mixed doubles with lrikke Eikeri as they fell to Demi Schuurs and Wesley Koolhof 7-6 (7-5) 7-5.