Great Britain booked their spot in September’s Billie Jean King Cup Finals as they defeated the Netherlands in a winner-take-all tie in The Hague. Both countries managed to beat Germany in their first qualifier ties of the week, and they met with a place in the Final 8 on the line.
Sonay Kartal got Britain off to a winning start when she beat Eva Vedder. But British No. 1 Katie Boulter lost to Suzan Lamens, meaning the tie went to a decisive doubles rubber. GB captain Anne Keothavong took a huge risk, replacing Harriet Dart doubles specialist Olivia Nicholls with a new team of Boulter and Jodie Burrage – but it paid off.
The Dutch team boasted a strong doubles talent in Demi Schuurs, a former world No. 7, who took to the court with Lamens. But Boulter and Burrage pulled off a huge upset, thrashing the seasoned doubles specialist and her partner 6-2 6-2.
The British pair saved break points early in both sets before breaking their opponents twice. On their second match point, Burrage sent an ace down the court that was called out by a linesperson before the umpire overruled it, sending GB straight into the Final 8.
After earning a place in the Finals in Shenzhen, Burrage said: “For me it was just the engry from this team, from the crowd, from my partner, from my captain.
“It was the energy. We went out there, we gave it our all, we swung, and that’s what we wanted to do. I want to say thank you to everyone who supported us today – my partner, captain, team, everyone here. It got us through.”
It was an impressive turnaround for Boulter, who got straight back on the doubles court after her disappointing 6-4 6-3 loss to Lamens in the second singles rubber, blowing her break lead in set two.
Earlier, Kartal started the day with a 6-4 4-6 6-1 victory over Vedder. The world No. 60 made her BJK Cup debut for Britain this week and went undefeated across her two singles matches.
She also breezed past Germany’s Jule Niemeier 6-4 6-2 on Friday before Boulter sealed victory for Britain against the German team, beating Tatjana Maria 1-6 6-3 6-1.
In the doubles rubber, Nicholls and Dart lost out to Laura Siegemund and Anna-Lena Friedsam 6-4 6-1 but it didn’t affect their chances of making it out of the group and into Finals week.
The British team join Italy, Kazakhstan, China, Ukraine and Spain in the BJK Cup Finals, which will take place at the Shenzhen Bay Sports Centre Arena from September 16-21. The tournament has been moved from its usual slot in November.
With six countries already through. there are two spots left. In Group A, either Canada or Japan will advance. In Group C, the USA will face Slovakia seeking a spot in the top eight.
Emma Raducanu, who pulled out of the BJK Cup qualifier ties to take care of her body, took to social media to congratulate her teammates on their victory. “so good rooting for these girls!” she tweeted.
The British No. 2 had been replaced by Burrage in the squad. And it was the right decision, with Burrage playing a crucial part in Saturday’s victory.
Content Source: www.express.co.uk