Argentina - 2
Australia - 1
THE MODERATOR: Just sum up the three matches quickly, if you can.
CAPTAIN LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, obviously disappointing to lose 2-1. I thought Olivia got better as the match went on. Yeah, had some chances there in the second set. If we could have snuck out the second set and taken it to a deciding, I think she would have got better throughout the third set.
Alex I thought played fantastic tennis tonight. He came out and played exactly how he's been playing in practice all week. Was very confident out there right from the word go. Played his plan A out there and executed that incredibly well. Didn't give his opponent time to adjust, especially on the hard court surface. Played a faultless match really.
Then the mixed doubles -- yeah, mixed doubles comes down to a few points here and there. Obviously there's quite a lot of sudden death juice points which can go either way. We were on the wrong side of them tonight.
THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.
Q. Lleyton, I think 12 months ago Australia was in an almost identical position. Lost the first, tied 2-1, went on to top the group, and made the semifinals. Are you confident or hopeful that history can repeat this time around?
CAPTAIN LLEYTON HEWITT: Well, we'll give ourselves every chance obviously. All we can do is prepare as well as possible. We have three days off now as well, so it's really just trying to prepare. Recover first and they then start preparing for the next match against Great Britain and see what happens.
Yeah, no matter what happens, it's great preparation for these guys going into the Australian Open. That's really important for these guys playing in front of a big crowd again, which is going to be very similar to what they'll get down in Melbourne.
Q. Alex, as an individual performance, how do you rate that in terms of your performances on Ken Rosewall Arena in terms of your level?
ALEX de MINAUR: Yeah, I was extremely pleased with my level on being the first match of the new season. You never know what to expect.
Obviously Tomy, he's a quality opponent, a very tough opponent. So I was happy in the way I executed today from the very start until the end.
Yeah, it's a very special court and a court that I love playing on. I would say I'm very happy to be able to play a good match today.
Q. Lleyton, with the mixed doubles, do you think it was more a case of the Argentinians playing extremely well or Matt and Ellen being a little off their game?
CAPTAIN LLEYTON HEWITT: Probably a little bit of both, I guess. Yeah, I'm sure the Argentinians executed what they wanted to. Our guys probably weren't quite as sharp just on those 50/50 points where we had opportunities.
If we were able to break her serve a couple of times, we may have been able to build some more momentum, but it wasn't to be. As I said, mixed doubles, yeah, can go either way.
Q. Alex, I know a lot of the talk going into the tournament was the body, the hip. How did you actually feel out there because you seemed to be moving brilliantly. I think 8 from 8 at the net in that first set as well. Any lingering issues? Is this the best you've felt for quite some time?
ALEX de MINAUR: Yeah, it's definitely the best I've felt since Wimbledon. Very happy with how the body is moving, how it's feeling. It's been a long time coming, but it's feeling in the best shape it has been in a very, very long time.
Q. Just one for Olivia. I think I heard you say on the broadcast that maybe your serve wasn't there tonight, but I just wanted to sort of get your perspective on your game tonight and how you felt.
OLIVIA GADECKI: Yeah. I mean, I felt like the first set I was a little bit off. I was playing with a bit of nerves. Then in the second set I felt like I was in the match a bit more. I created some opportunities.
But, yeah, I just didn't quite execute. There was a couple of things that I was just struggling with. But Nadia played well and credit to her. She didn't make it easy out there, but hopefully with every match I'll get better.
Q. Obviously disappointing, but what was it like playing in front of that crowd? I would think that is probably one of the, if not one of the biggest crowds you've ever played in front of.
OLIVIA GADECKI: Yeah, I think it's definitely, like you said, one of the bigger ones. It's such an incredible atmosphere out there. There's nothing like playing in front of a home crowd, them behind you. It is a little bit disappointing to get the loss, but like I said, it's quite electric out there.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports