PERTH, Dec 29 (Reuters) - Alexander Zverev eased past Thiago Monteiro 6-4 6-4 as Germany beat Brazil for a winning start to their United Cup defense on Sunday while the Czech Republic got the better of Norway in a hard-fought match.

Zverev had a lengthy spell on the sidelines after damaging his ankle ligaments at the 2022 French Open but returned to his career-high ranking of number two following his Paris Masters triumph last month.

The 27-year-old continued his good form in the mixed team tournament that kicks off the new season as he used his heavy shots from the baseline to grab a break in the first game and took the opening set on serve with a huge ace.

Zverev stepped up a gear at the start of the next set with a stunning backhand winner en route to another break and he closed out the match comfortably to give Germany an unassailable 2-0 lead ahead of the mixed doubles match.

"I'm very happy to be back, very happy to be playing for team Germany," said Zverev. "Perth is one of my favorite cities in Australia, I really enjoy my time here.

"I didn't play that much tennis in the off season, I was actually in the gym... so the work has paid off I guess."

Laura Siegemund had earlier earned Germany their first point in the Group E encounter with a 6-3 1-6 6-4 victory over Beatriz Haddad Maia at the RAC Arena.

Meanwhile, former French Open runner-up Karolina Muchova got her campaign up and running with a 6-2 6-2 win over Malene Helgo in Sydney but Norway leveled the Group B clash thanks to Casper Ruud's battling effort.

Ruud needed a couple of medical timeouts for a left thigh problem before seeing off Thomas Machac 7-6(6) 5-7 6-4 but the world number six was unable to return for the mixed doubles decider that followed.

United Cup debutant Muchova and Machac then shrugged off the quick turnaround from their singles matches to ease past Ulrikke Eikeri and Viktor Durasovic 6-4 6-4 at the Ken Rosewall Arena.

United States, the inaugural champions of the tournament in 2023, play Canada in Perth later in the day while Italy were in action against Switzerland in Sydney.

(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)

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