Kvitova draws first blood

Moskow - Petra Kvitova helped give the Czech Republic a 1-0 lead in their Fed Cup final encounter with hosts Russia after beating Maria Kirilenko in straight sets here on Saturday.

The 21-year-old left-hander, who is currently ranked second in the world, won 6-2, 6-2 in one hour 10 minutes to record her first win over Kirilenko in their third meeting.

Kvitova, fresh from her success at last week's season-ending WTA championships in Istanbul, looked more focused from the start, and broke twice to take the opening set in 32 minutes.

This year's Wimbledon champion then underlined her superiority in the second set on the hard court at Moscow's Olympic stadium, producing two more breaks to take the set and the match.

The clash between Russia's Svetlana Kuznetsova and Czech Lucie Safarova will complete the first day's schedule.