Led by the impressed play of Leylah Fernandez, Canada has reached the ultimate of the Billie Jean King Cup for the primary time.
Fernadez and Gabriela Dabrowski upset Czechia’s Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova in a second-set tiebreaker 7-5, 7-6 (3) on Saturday as Canada superior with a 2-1 total victory within the semifinal of the ladies’s worldwide group tennis match.
Fernandez gave Canada hope with a singles win in opposition to Marketa Vondrousova, 6-2, 2-6, 6-3, earlier within the day. She and Dabrowski then took down top-of-the-line doubles groups on the earth within the finale in Seville, Spain.
“It’s an awesome day for Canadian tennis,” stated Fernandez, who added that the Canadian males’s victory within the 2022 Davis Cup impressed her and her teammates.
“Within the singles match, I used to be tremendous blissful to have the group with me, cheering me on that actually helped me.”
WATCH l Canada punches ticket to Billie Jean King Cup finals for 1st time:
Featured VideoLeylah Fernandez and Gabriela Dabrowski defeated Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova of Czechia 7-5, 7-6(3) to punch Canada’s ticket to the Billie Jean King Cup finals for the primary time in historical past.
Canada will meet Italy within the 12-country remaining on Sunday.
Reside protection of the ultimate begins at 9 a.m. ET on CBCSports.ca, the CBC Sports activities app and CBC Gem.
Dabrowski, a 31-year-old from Ottawa, gained the U.S. Open ladies’s doubles championship two months in the past.
Krejcikova, the 2021 French Open champion, has paired with Siniakova to win seven main doubles titles, together with this 12 months’s Australian Open.
Canada gained the opening set of the decisive doubles match. The groups stayed on serve till Canada broke their opponents to take a 6-5 benefit after which closed the take care of a win on serve.
The groups traded breaks late within the second set, after which Canada persevered within the tiebreaker, with Fernandez serving to ship her group into the ultimate.
Canada’s Marina Stakusic opened the semifinal with a 2-6, 1-6 loss to Krejcikova. However Fernandez stored Canada’s hopes alive along with her win over Vondrousova, the reigning Wimbledon ladies’s champion, within the day’s second match.
“I simply performed my sport and tried to take it to her,” the 21-year-old Fernandez stated after her singles win. “I really like Billie Jean Cup tennis. It’s the World Cup of tennis.”
WATCH | Stakusic loses opening match of semis:
Featured VideoThe 18-year-old from Mississauga, Ont. misplaced to Czechia’s Barbora Krejcikova in straight units (2-6, 1-6) within the opening semifinals match of the Billie Jean King Cup Finals.
Canada superior to the semifinals of the celebrated group occasion for under the second time and first since 1988.
Vondrousova, who broke by way of for a Grand Slam win at Wimbledon this summer time, has gained 14 straight matches on the Billie Jean Cup.
The world No. 7 noticed her 26-set win and 13-match win streak snapped on the Billie Jean King Cup by Fernandez.
Fernandez held serve in a prolonged 10-minute opening sport. She swiftly snatched a 4-0 lead and held on for a 6-2 first-set victory.
WATCH | Fernandez retains Canada alive:
Featured VideoThe Laval, Que. native defeated Czechia’s Marketa Vondrousova 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 to drive an all-important deciding third match of the Billie Jean King Cup semifinals.
The tables had been reversed within the second set. Vondrousova rallied to win the second set, going forward 4-0 to drive a deciding set with a 6-2 second-set victory.
Vondrousova and Fernandez broke one another’s serve to start the deciding set. However the Montreal native, ranked No. 35 on the earth, gave Canada a 3-1 lead, successful her serve within the second sport and breaking Vondrousova and held on to drive a deciding doubles sport.
Stakusic’s magical run ended within the opening match in opposition to Czechia. Ranked 258th on the earth, the 18-year-old from Toronto shocked two top-70 gamers in opening wins in Canada’s group-stage victories in opposition to Spain and Poland.
She fell behind the 27-year-old Krejcikova after the Czech broke the Canadian’s opening-match service sport.
Stakusic fought again to path within the first set 3-2, however the 2021 French Open ladies’s champion stormed out to win three straight video games to seize the lead.
World No. 10 Krejcikova was even higher in opposition to her younger opponent, successful the second set 6-1 to place a degree on the board for Czechia.
Within the first semifinal on Saturday, Jasmine Paolini defeated Tamara Zidansek, and Martina Trevisan downed Kaja Juvan as Italy sealed a 2-0 win in opposition to Slovenia.
The eighth-seeded Italians will search their fifth Billie Jean Cup title, the primary since 2013.