[ad_1]
The WTA Tour pauses this week as players line up for their countries for Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge duty.
A total of 52 nations are taking part in the women’s world cup of tennis as the 2023 edition of the Billie Jean King Cup gets underway, competing across Qualifiers and Group I and Group II events.
The 18 nations contesting the Qualifiers from 14-15 April on a home-and-away basis are battling for a place at the 2023 Billie Jean King Cup Finals, which will take place from 7-12 November 2023, alongside 2022 world champions Switzerland, 2022 runners-up Australia and one wild card.
The Finals will feature 12 teams competing in 4 round-robin groups of 3, with the 4 group winners qualifying for the semi-finals, and the 2023 Billie Jean King Cup champions crowned after the completion of the knockout phase.
Great Britain’s Billie Jean King Cup Qualifier against France takes place at the Coventry Building Society Arena from 14-15 April, and tickets prices start from £5 for both days.
The winning team will join 2022 finalists Switzerland and Australia in the 2023 Billie Jean King Cup Finals in November.
Great Britain reached the semi-finals of the BJK Cup in Glasgow last year for the first time in 41 years, narrowly missing out on a place in the final after losing to Australia 2-1.
France were crowned champions for the 3rd time in their history back in 2019, and are one of only four nations to have competed at every edition of the competition.
Last year, though, the French team lost out to Italy in qualifying and had to beat Netherlands to book their place in the 2023 Qualifiers.
The two teams last faced each other back in 1981, when Virginia Wade and Sue Barker carried the British team to a 3-0 victory.
While Great Britain is without its top player, Emma Raducanu, this year, Anne Keothavong has named an unchanged side from the one that came so close to reaching last year’s final, with Harriet Dart, Heather Watson, Katie Boulter and doubles specialists Alicia Barnett and Olivia Nicholls in the line-up looking to book GB’s place in the Finals once more.
France have put forward a strong quartet against their old rivals, led by World No 5 Caroline Garcia with Alizé Cornet, Clara Burel and Kristina Mladenovic alongside.
Anne Keothavong (L), seen here with Harriet Dart in Glasgow, is fielding the same team that took Great Britain to the BJK Cup semi-finals last year in Coventry
© Ian MacNicol/Getty Images for LTA
Elsewhere, a mouthwatering line-up of players are named in the teams, including 2022 Wimbledon champion and World No 10 Elena Rybakina, who leads a full-strength Kazakhstan side at home for the visit of Poland.
Rybakina, who also finished runner-up at the Australian Open earlier this year, will be joined by Yulia Putintseva, Gozal Ainitdinova, Anna Danilina and Zhanel Rustemova as the Kazakhs look to reach the BJK Cup Finals for a second straight year.
Poland had hoped to field World No 1 Iga Swiatek but, though initially announced, the 21-year old will miss the tie following a rib injury and infection that also forced her out of action in Miami.
Nevertheless, the Poles still have a strong team that includes 2023 Aussie Open semi-finalist Magda Linette, Magdalena Frech, Weronika Falkowska and Alicja Rosolska.
Ukraine also will be without its top-ranked player, but will still prove a handful for Czechia when the two sides meet on neutral ground in Turkiye, fielding Marta Kostyuk, Dayana Yastremska, Katarina Zavatska and Lyudmila Kichenok against Barbora Krejcikova, ranked 16, alongside Katerina Siniakova, BJK Cup debutant Linda Noskova, Karolina Muchova and Marketa Vondrousova.
Kathy Rinaldi has named an intimidating USA side for her team’s Qualifier against Austria, fielding the World No 3 Jessica Pegula and No 6 Coco Gauff joined by Madison Keys, Danielle Collins and Caty McNally.
Austria have named their strongest possible line-up for their trip to Delray Beach to take on USA in Julia Grabher, Sinja Kraus, Barbara Haas, Tamira Paszek and Melanie Klaffner, who have the unenviable task of taking on a strong United States’ side.
World No 51 Leylah Fernandez leads Canada against Belgium, after Bianca Andreescu withdrew because of the nasty fall in Miami that tore two ligaments in her left ankle, and the 20-year old will be joined by Rebecca Marino and Gabriela Dabrowski.
Belgium’s new captain Wim Fissette will be without his top two players when his team travels to Vancouver, and will look to Ysaline Bonaventure, Greet Minnen and the experienced duo of Yanina Wickmayer and Kirsten Flipkens in their attempt to preserve their record of always reaching the Finals.
Slovakia’s team contains Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, Viktoria Kuzmova, Renata Jamrichova and Tereza Mihalikova, to take on Italy, who have made one change to the side that competed at the 2022 Finals in Glasgow, with Camila Giorgi coming into the line-up, which also includes Martina Trevisan, Elisabetta Cocciaretto, Jasmine Paolini and Lucia Bronzetti.
Team USA, which has won the BJK Cup 18 times, take on Austria at home in Delay Beach, Florida
© Eakin Howard/Getty Images
Against Brazil, Germany features their two highest-ranked players in Tatjana Maria and Jule Niemeier, as well as handing talented 21-year-old Eva Lys a second call-up alongside the more experienced Anna-Lena Friedsam and Laura Siegemund.
Brazil’s Beatriz Haddad Maia, the World No 13, leads her side alongside Laura Pigossi, Carolina Alves, Ingrid Martins and Luisa Stefani as the South Americans look to qualify for the Finals for the first time.
Slovenia have named Tamara Zidansek, Kaja Juvan, Nina Potocnik, Pia Lovric and Ela Nala Milic in their team to face Romania as they also look to advance to the Finals for the first time in their history, while Romania will look to Ana Bogdan as they are missing 3 of their top 4 players for their away trip to Slovenia, who will line up with Irina Bara, Jaqueline Cristian, Anca Todoni and Monica Niculescu.
Spain is also missing its top player, Paula Badosa, but will be hoping that strength in depth is enough to see them through against Mexico in Marbella, with Nuria Parizas Diaz, Rebeka Masarova, Sara Sorribes Tormo, Marina Bassols Ribera and Aliona Bolsova looking to book their country’s place in the Finals once again.
Mexico have named the same team that defeated Serbia last November in Fernanda Contreras, Marcela Zacarias, Renata Zarazua and Giuliana Olmos.
Switzerland are the defending champions after Simona Waltert, Viktorija Golubic, Jil Teichmann, Belinda Bencic and Heinz Gunthardt won the Billie Jean King Cup in Glasgow last year
© Ian MacNicol/Getty Images for LTA
All Qualifiers tie are played as best-of-five matches, with 4 singles and a doubles, and, on Day 1, the home nation’s No 1 player will play the away nation’s No 2 player, and then vice versa.
On Day 2, the home nation’s No 1 player will play against the away nation’s No 1 player, with the home nation’s No 2 player subsequently playing the away nation’s No 2 player, while the doubles will then be contested. All live matches are played as best-of-three tiebreak sets.
The 9 losing nations in the Qualifiers will compete in the Play-offs, which will take place on either 10-11, or 11-12 November 2023.
The Play-offs will be played on a home-and-away basis, with the winning teams competing in the 2024 Qualifiers, while the losing nations will contest Group I events in 2024.
Detail view of the Trophy during the Billie Jean King Cup Finals 2022 in Glasgow, Scotland.
© Ian MacNicol/Getty Images for LTA
As well as the Qualifiers, Group I and some Group II events are also taking place this week, beginning on either 10 or 11 April.
Groups I-III of Billie Jean King Cup are divided into 3 regions: Americas, Asia/Oceania and Europe/Africa; and within each region there are two divisions – Group I being the higher and Group II the lower. Europe/Africa also has a Group III.
Group events take place over a week and are played at one location.
Each Group is initially split into round-robin pools, with play-offs then deciding promotion and relegation. The exact format of each Group varies according to the number of participating teams.
Promoted teams from Group I will advance in the competition and contest November’s Play-offs with the hope of sealing a place in the 2024 Qualifiers, while promoted teams from Group II will progress to the next Group I event.
Starting on Monday 10 April and kickstarting the entire week of Billie Jean King Cup week, Group I Europe/Africa have been taking place in Antalya, Türkiye, where Bulgaria, Croatia, Denmark, Egypt, Hungary, Latvia, Netherlands, Norway, Serbia, Sweden and Turkey are playing on a round-robin basis, with 1 pool of 5 teams and 1 pool of 6 teams.
Pool winners are promoted directly but will play-off for position. The second-placed teams in both pools will play off for a promotion spot. There will be a positional play-off between the teams finishing 3rd-5th in both pools, after which 3 teams are promoted and 2 teams relegated
From Tuesday 11 April, Group I Americas sees Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Guatemala and Peru competing on a round-robin basis in 1 pool of 6 teams, from which 2 nations will be promoted and 2 nations relegated in Cucuta, Colombia; while in Group 1 Asia / Oceania is hosted by Tashkent, Uzbekistan, where China, PR, India, Japan, Korea Rep, Thailand and Uzbekistan play in 1 pool of 6 teams for 2 promotion spots and 2 nations are relegated; and Group II Europe/Africa also got underway on Monday in Oeiras, Portugal, with Bosnia and Herzegovina, Estonia, Georgia, Greece, Ireland, Israel, Kosovo, Lithuania, Malta, Portugal and South Africa competing in 2 pools, one of 6 and one of 5, and the top two teams in each pool will play-off for promotion.
Twelve nations have been crowned Billie Jean King Cup champions since the competition started 60 years ago in 1963, with USA having won more titles than any other nation at 18, and the Czech Republic second on the all-time list of title wins with 11.
Eight previous Billie Jean King Cup champions – France, Czech Republic, Italy, USA, Slovakia, Belgium, Spain and Germany – are competing in next week’s Qualifiers.
A record 134 nations have entered Billie Jean King Cup this year, following 2022 when 118 nations and 459 players took part, both of which were records at the time.
[ad_2]
