PRAGUE (AP) — The United States won singles matches against Spain to triumph in the semifinals of the Billie Jean King Cup on Wednesday.
The Americans faced a must-see scenario after losing to Slovakia 2-1 in Group C on Tuesday, and Sloane Stephens and Danielle Collins scored back-to-back wins to make the final double meaningless.
The United States, the top-hit team at the festival formerly known as the Fed Cup with 18 titles, will face Russia in the semifinals. The Russians took out the protective champion of France on the previous day.
Stephens beat Nuria Parrizas-Diaz 6-4, 6-4, getting her seventh break of the adjustment in the last and converting her first fit ball with a winning backhand.
“I came out very confident, I knew I was ready,” said Stephens, the 2107 U. S. Open champion.
Collins was given the moment point by beating Sara Sorribes Tormo 6-1, 6-0 in just under an hour to seal victory and Spain.
“I think in this format, each and every match, each and every set counts,” Collins said. “For me, I’m on a good streak. I think it’s pretty hard to put into words when you have functionality like that.
After sweeping Canada 3-0 the day before, Russia needed a best-of-three win against France to move past Group A.
He may only count on his player, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, to hand him over.
Pavlyuchenkova, 12th, bounced back to beat Alize Cornet 5-7, 6-4, 6-2 to give Russia the position in the semifinals.
“I’m so satisfied and so proud of myself,” Pavlyuchenkova said. “It was a game. It was very smart tennis, but the most important thing was the fighting spirit of either of them. “
After wasting the first set, the Russian beat Cornet in the first matches of the next two sets to her record against her opponent in 59th place at 7-1, achieving 34 winners along the way.
After the 2019 champions disappointed outsider Canada 2-1 in their first attack on Monday, France had to beat Russia 3-0 to qualify.
Last year’s edition was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The 12 organizations in the ultimate are divided into 4 organizations from 3 organizations in a new festival format. Only the winning organizations advance to Friday’s semifinals.
Earlier, Clara Burel kept France alive by winning the first singles.
Burel, ranked 77th, Ekaterina Alexandrova, ranked 32nd, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 in her first win over a top 50 player in her individual debut in the competition.
The Russian scored 34 winning shots, but also committed 44 direct fouls before committing a double fault on the fourth ball in burel’s form.
“It’s very special. It’s my country’s first match and I’m very pleased to be able to win today,” said Burel, 20.
The Russians won the double for an overall 2-1 victory.
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