Katie Boulter strode to the baseline on Sundaylast night for one of the most important matches of her career with a considerable amount of pressure on her shoulders. Just a year ago and a little over 100 miles away, Leylah Fernandez had inspired her Canadian team to an unprecedented Billie Jean King Cup triumph in Seville. Now, in order to extend her team’s supreme run, Boulter had to take the defending champion out.
In this special final week of the greatest season of her career, Boulter spectacularly rose to the occasion once more as she brushed Fernandez aside 6-2, 6-4 to lead Great Britain into the semi-finals of the BJK Cup with a commanding 2-0 victory over Canada.
As was the case during Friday’s excellent 2-0 quarter-final win over Germany, Emma Raducanu set the bar sky high earlier on Sunday by delivering the first point for Great Britain with a brilliant performance as she held off a late surge from Rebecca Marino to close out a 6-0, 7-5 win.
Related: ‘Disappointing’: Australia exit Billie Jean King Cup at hands of Slovakia
“Emma makes it very easy to come out here and have a swing at it by starting 1-0 up,” said Boulter. “Full credit to her for starting us off so well. I’m really proud of my performance today, I just wanted to come out here, have a go at the defending champs and hopefully get a big win. I’m really pleased with myself.”
While Raducanu’s BJK Cup record now stands at an immense 5-1, Boulter is now 14-4 in both singles and doubles. Great Britain’s leading players have both consistently played some of their best tennis while representing their country and, as a result of their efforts, they will face Slovakia on Tuesday for a place in the final. Earlier, Slovakia continued their surprise run by defeating Australia 2-0.
“I’m in a fortunate position to captain an amazing group of people,” Anne Keothavong said. “I really believe we’ve got a team that can win this competition. We’re not there yet, we’ve still got work to do, but we can enjoy this moment.”
With a win under her belt after her recent two-month injury layoff, Raducanu was flowing with confidence from the beginning against Marino, a seasoned veteran with an enormous serve but extremely limited movement. Her return of serve was particularly brilliant as she steamrolled.
During her recent layoff, Raducanu worked extremely hard on reconfiguring her serve and it again proved a huge asset as Marino found her range on her serve and put Raducanu under significant pressure in set two. Every time she was struggling, her first serve bailed her out of trouble and she eventually closed out a great win.
“I’m playing some really tough opponents and not to be underestimated by their rankings on these surfaces, because, I mean, both are very dangerous,” said Raducanu. “I was one point away from probably losing the second set and then being in a battle. So I’m really pleased with how I fought and how I’m faring up against these top girls.”
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Since this match-up was confirmed, the contest between the two No 1s, Boulter and Fernandez, always seemed like the most significant of the tie. Boulter played an excellent match, serving extremely well under pressure and dominating the baseline with her forehand as she put Fernandez under relentless pressure until the end. While Boulter soared, Fernandez struggled badly with her serve; she spent the match chasing her ball toss, rolling in first serves and double faulting on many key points throughout the match.
As Boulter edged closer to victory, her nerves threatened to pull her off track. After failing to serve out the match, Boulter squandered her first three match points. In those final moments, Boulter drew on the confidence she has built throughout this year and she found the strength to close out an unforgettable win.
“I feel like it has been building for some time now and I feel like it’s finally coming out,” she said. “We’ve got a great team, all the girls are great people and we’ve got great chemistry going on. I’m so proud of everyone.”
