Italy Advances to the Billie Jean King Cup Final for the Third Consecutive Year
SHENZHEN, China – The Italian team, the current champion, secured their place in the Billie Jean King Cup final for the third consecutive time after coming back and defeating Ukraine 2-1 in the semifinals held this Friday.
The duo composed of Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini, both Roland Garros champions, prevailed in the decisive doubles match against Marta Kostyuk and Lyudmyla Kichenok with a score of 6-2, 6-3.
In the second set, Kostyuk and Kichenok took a 3-1 lead and had a chance for 4-2, but they committed a double fault that changed the course of the match.
This point was the second achieved by Paolini, who, in the second singles match, came back from a set and a 4-2 deficit against Elina Svitolina, achieving a 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 victory.
Marta Kostyuk had given Ukraine a promising start by defeating Elisabetta Cocciaretto with a score of 6-2, 6-3.
With this result, the Italians will seek their fifth title in the 2024 final, after having lost against Canada in the 2023 final.
Ukraine, for its part, was participating in the semifinals for the first time in its history.
The United States will face Great Britain in the second semi-final to be played on Saturday. The United States defeated Kazakhstan in the quarter-finals, while Great Britain eliminated Japan.
The BJK Cup, formerly known as the Fed Cup, has the United States as the most successful team, with 18 titles, although it hasn’t won since 2017.
