Fed Cup

‘We Cannot Have Amateurs’ – Greece Slams Officials Following Fed Cup Defeat

Officials working at the University of Bath have come under fire over their officiating during the Fed Cup clash between Great Britain and Greece.

Published

1 month ago

08/02/2019

Adam Addicott

The first Fed Cup competition to be held on British territory for 26 years has been marred by allegations of poor officiating during matches.

Two members of the Greek team have criticised the tournament shortly after their losses to Great Britain on Friday at the University of Bath. World No.38 Maria Sakkari voiced her frustration after losing 4-6, 6-2, 6-3, to Johanna Konta. Speaking to reporters after her match, Sakkari said that too many mistakes were made.

“This is unacceptable. They were making a lot of mistakes,” BBC Sport quoted Sakkari as saying. “We cannot have amateurs.”

Clearly bemused by the events, the 23-year-old continued by taking aim at the ‘terrible’ line judges. Throughout the match both her and Konta disputed a series of calls that was made against them. Unlike many events on the ATP and WTA Tour, there is no Hawk-Eye system in place for players to challenge the calls.

“Yeah they are terrible. Since the first round,” Sakkari commented about the line judges.
“They’re the worst I’ve ever seen in my life. This is unacceptable.”
“Because we have many players in the top 100, we are playing with poor balls, nine and 11 change, and with line umpires that have never worked in their life. That’s what I want to say.”

Embed from Getty Images

Valentini Grammatikopoulou, who lost to Katie Boulter in three sets during the tie, was also critical. The world No.171 slammed the umpiring of her match by describing it as unfair. Grammatikopoulou lost her match 6-3, 4-6, 6-3.

“I’m really disappointed,” she said. “It’s really unfair to play like this. Three calls were in deuce. You can watch it actually and I will show her the balls were out.”
“She [Boulter] deserved to win but let’s play fair. That’s why we play tennis, you know? Not to judge the lines. It’s really tough. It’s not about how she played, it’s about fair play.
“If the ball was out, I accept. If the ball was in, I accept. But not if it’s really clearly out. It doesn’t matter anymore but if I want to lose, I want to lose nice.”

In the wake of the claims, British captain Anne Keothavong stated that those controversial calls had no impact on the outcome of the tie.

“The line-calling today didn’t affect the outcome of the matches. There were tight line calls. Some of the bad line calls went both ways, but that’s tennis.” Said Keothavong.
“There was a lot of tension out there. But my brother’s an official so I’m sympathetic to officials these days. It’s not easy out there for them too.”

Responding to the comments, the Lawn Tennis Association has defended the officials. Rebecca James, who is the LTA Tournament Director, have said that every lines-person and umpire working at the tournament in Bath has the correct qualification to do so.

“The officials selected for this event by the Association of British Tennis Officials (ABTO) have all worked at the highest levels of the game. The chair umpires are internationally certified and selected by the ITF. The lines people are all paid LTA licenced officials, who have all worked Wimbledon semi-finals and finals between them, including many on previous Davis Cup and Fed Cup matches.”

Great Britain is currently sitting in first place in Pool A of the tournament. They are yet to lose a match after securing 3-0 victories over Greece and Slovenia. They will play Hungary in their final group match on Friday.

Fed Cup

Copper Box Arena To Host Historic Fed Cup Tie Against Kazakhstan

Great Britain will host Kazakhstan in the Copper Box Arena in April in their World Group II Play-Off tie.

Published

3 weeks ago

28/02/2019

Tony Fairbairn

(@FedCup - Twitter)

The Copper Box Arena will host Great Britain’s historic Fed Cup World Group II tie against Kazakhstan in April.

The venue was announced on Thursday afternoon as Great Britain prepare for a historic World Group II tie against Kazakhstan in April.

The Copper Box Arena hosted some Olympic events in 2012 and has a capacity of 5,800 as Great Britain look to build on the momentum they picked up in Bath in February.

It is located in Hackney, London not too far from where Great Britain’s Fed Cup captain, Anne Keothavong, grew up and has stated the importance of April’s tie, “It’s very special to come back to my home borough of Hackney,” she said at a visit to Clapton Girls Academy.

“Having grown up and started playing tennis here, I never dreamt that one day I would be coming back and leading the British team in what is the world cup of women’s team tennis.

“Looking ahead to April, words can’t describe the sense of anticipation we are going to have playing our first World Group play-off at home.

“Home support makes such a massive difference in sport and we saw the impact the GB fans had in getting the team over the line in Bath recently.”

The tie is set to be Great Britain’s first home-and-away home tie for 28 years and Keothavong is looking for a big home support on Easter weekend, “For the fans, I’m hoping that seeing our players perform with all they have got will inspire the next generation of kids to get out there and get involved with tennis.”

The tie will take place on the weekend of the 20th and 21st of April with tickets expected to be priced at around £12. This match is expected to be close with not much separating the four singles players involved.

Fed Cup

Fed Cup Draws: Great Britain Get Second Home Tie In Two Months, Czechs Look To Bounce Back

Great Britain will have another home tie as they face Kazakhstan in April’s World Group II Play-Offs

Published

1 month ago

12/02/2019

Tony Fairbairn

Johanna Konta (@SkySportsTennis - Twitter)

After waiting 26 years for a home tie, Great Britain will have a second tie in two months as they face Kazakhstan in April’s World Group II Play-Offs.

After hosting some Zone Group I Europe/Africa action in Bath and successfully qualifying for the World Group II Play-Offs, Great Britain have been handed another home tie.

The Brits will face Kazakhstan in April with the winners getting promoted to the second tier of women’s team tennis, a historic occasion for both nation.

This tie along with the other World Group II and World Group play-off ties will take place on Easter weekend between the 20th and 21st of April.

After finding out the news GB Fed Cup captain Anne Keothavong said she is ready for a raucous atmosphere in April, “We saw the fantastic atmosphere home fans create and the role they play in lifting our players beyond their limits.”

There is strong rumour that the tie could be played at the Copper Box Arena in London although that will be confirmed next week.

Meanwhile the pick of the other ties sees a strong Russia team host Italy while either the Netherlands or Japan face relegation to Zone Group I.

Czechs Look To Bounce Back.

In the World Group Play-Offs draw the Czech Republic were handed an easy home tie to Canada as they face unchartered territory in April.

The defending champions will play their first play-off tie since losing 3-2 to Romania in an exhilarating tie in Ostrava which was their first defeat on home soil for ten years.

While the other 2018 Fed Cup finalists USA will host Switzerland and Latvia host Germany in a historic tie for the hosts as they look to make the World Group for the first time in their history.

Here is the full World Group and World Group II Play-Offs draw with the ties taking place on the 20th/21st of April:

*Home teams are first

World Group Play-Offs

Czech Republic v Canada

USA v Switzerland

Latvia v Germany

Belgium v Spain

World Group II Play-Offs

Russia v Italy

Japan v Netherlands

Great Britain v Kazakhstan

Slovakia v Brazil

Fed Cup

Simona Halep Vows To ‘Give Her All’ In Fed Cup Following Shock Win For Romania

The former world No.1 has her eyes set on winning the team competition this year.

Published

1 month ago

11/02/2019

Adam Addicott

Simona Halep cheering on Romania in their Fed Cup clash with The Czech Republic (image via ubitennis.com)

Reigning French Open champion Simona Halep has pledged to fully commit herself to the Fed Cup after helping guide Romania to a shock win over the weekend.

Halep recorded wins over Katerina Siniakova and Karolina Pliskova during her country’s surprise 3-2 win over heavyweights the Czech Republic. A team who has won the title in six of the past eight years of the competition. The deciding win was clinched in the doubles when Romania’s Irina-Camelia Begu and Monica Niculescu defeated Siniakova and Barbora Krejcikova 6-7 (2-7) 6-4 6-4 in a match that lasted just under three hours.

“It was my biggest and best win in the Fed Cup and to win both rubbers against the Czech Republic means a lot to me because they have such a big history in this competition,” Halep told reporters following her win over Pliskova.

Romania now finds themselves in the semifinals of the competition for the first time since 1973. Last year the team defeated Canada in Group II and then won their play-off tie against Switzerland to graduate to the top tier of the competition. They have a winning 6-3 record in the Fed Cup since 2015.

Reflecting on the latest triumph, Halep believes it will help inspire the next generation of players in her home country. During an interview with Telekom Sport on Sunday, the former world No.1 say she will ‘give her all’ to the team this year.

“It was a very tensed match, it was even harder in the stands. I was very nervous. Monica asked me before if I want to get in court, but I told her she is better.” The Romanian Journal quoted Halep as saying.
“We all made a huge effort for this game. We played against a big champion, Czech Republic. the girls are extraordinary, they left their heart on the court, so they managed to win.
“As I said before, this year I am giving all for the Fed Cup team. It is a huge step for us, for our country. The little ones who start playing tennis can trust us. This Fed Cup means something.”

Hoping to reach the final for the first time in history, Romania will take on France in the semi-finals in April. A country they last played back in 1976 at the Spectrum Stadium in Philadelphia, America. France defeated Belgium 3-1 in their quarter-final tie.

The semi-final tie will be held in France at a yet to be confirmed venue. In the other semi-final, Australia will take on Belarus.