Paris: Russian Dinara Safina got off to a winning start in her bid to defend her title at the $600,000 Paris Indoor Open. The seventh seed, who lifted her first major title here last year at the expense of favourite Amelie Mauresmo, overcame compatriot Anna Chakvetadze 6-2, 6-1.

It was a good day for the hosts as Stephanie Foretz and Emilie Loit also booked their spots in the second round of the tournament, where they will play each other.

Foretz ousted eighth-seeded German Anna-Lena Groenefeld 6-1, 1-6, 6-0. “It’s a bit like being at home. I live just five minutes away,” explained Foretz.

Loit easily dismissed veteran Italian Roberta Vinci 6-2, 6-1. “It was almost a perfect match for me. It’s been a long time since that happened,” said Loit.

Australian Open champion Mauresmo, the top seed here and the recipient of a first-round bye, will open her bid later in the week along with another home hope, No. 2 seed Mary Pierce.

Meanwhile, Croatia begin the defence of the Davis Cup with an awkward tie in Austria and Ivan Ljubicic will again be pivotal to their hopes, another report adds from London.

This time he has the added burden of being stand-in captain after the departure of Niki Pilic and Goran Ivanisevic's decision not to fill the vacancy.

The holders are top seeds for the 16-nation draw, which also features second seeds Slovakia’s daunting trip to Chile, Germany hosting France and Switzerland taking on Australia. (REUTERS)