Switzerland reaches the BJK Cup semifinals in the Olympic final
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Prague (AFP) – Belinda Bencic and Jil Teichmann returned the favor for the Olympic double final on Thursday when they led Switzerland past the Czech Republic into the semifinals of the Billie Jean King Cup.
The Swiss duo defeated Lucie Hradecka and Katerina Siniakova 6: 3, 6: 3 and gave Switzerland a 2-1 win over the hosts in the renamed version of the Fed Cup and prepared a semi-final against Australia.
The win will taste particularly sweet for the Swiss as Bencic and Viktorija Golubic lost this year’s Olympic final to Siniakova and Barbora Krejcikova.
In the individual rounds on Thursday, Marketa Vondrousova defeated Golubic 6: 4, 6: 2 and Bencic beat Krejcikova 7: 6 (7/2), 6: 4.
In Thursday’s opening game, Australia beat Belarus 2-1, while Storm Sanders beat Yuliya Hatouka 6-3, 6-3 and Ajla Tomljanovic beat Aliaksandra Sasnovich 4-6, 6-2, 6-3.
Sasnovich and Lidziya Marozava then earned a consolation point for Belarus by beating Olivia Gadecki and Ellen Perez 6-4, 6-4 in doubles.
“I played good tennis today, I was very nervous but happy to win,” said Sanders.
“I didn’t go broke during the whole game so I’m really happy with the way I served today.”
Tomljanovic got off to a stumbling start on her first appearance at the tournament, leaving Sasnovich 4-0 ahead and then winning the set.
But she managed two breaks in the second set and added another four against three in the third set for the increasingly nervous Belarusian.
“There really is no better feeling, I was happy that I was able to get out today and that I got the point makes me incredibly happy,” said Croatian-born Tomljanovic.
“Just a few points”
In the evening, Golubic stormed into the game against Vondrousova and took a 4-1 lead.
But Vondrousova survived the crisis as she improved her serve and ventured into the net more often.
The Czech continued into the second round, building a 4-0 lead against the increasingly desperate, racket-crushing Golubic, then held onto her serve to delight the home crowd.
“It’s definitely a relief, I think it was a great game,” said Vondrousova.
“I’m glad I turned it around, it was just a couple of points.”
But the joy in Prague’s O2 arena didn’t last long when Bencic, who had defeated Vondrousova in the Olympic singles final, stepped onto the pitch and quickly took a 3-0 lead against French Open winner Krejcikova.
Bencic took the lead 5-2 but Krejcikova bounced back and leveled, bringing the set to a tie-break with the more aggressive Bencic gaining the upper hand.
The tug-of-war continued in a nervous second set, in which Bencic earned an extra break to beat the impatient Krejcikova.
In the double rubber, the Swiss looked more compact than the higher-ranking Czech couple.
They kept their serve flawlessly throughout the game with Teichmann and Bencic added the flair they had taken from their individual victory.
“The key was to take the full risk because they have an absolutely great team,” said Bencic.
“I think Jil was perfect for that, she’s an all-in girl and I’m glad I was her partner today.”
In the other semi-final on Friday, Russia will face the USA. The final is on Saturday.
© 2021 AFP