Ukraine has reached its first Billie Jean King Cup final after easing past Italy with back-to-back straight-set wins on Saturday.
Led by world No. 7 Elina Svitolina, Ukraine stayed firmly in control throughout their clash with Italy, who have won the past two editions of the team event. Anhelina Kalinina got her country off to a stellar start by downing Tyra Grant 6-3, 6-4 in the opening match. Following this, Svitolina gave Ukraine an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match tie by defeating Jasmine Paolini 6-2, 6-2 in just over an hour. Paolini was on a 10-match winning streak in the BJK Cup.
It is the first time the team has beaten Italy in the event, formerly known as the Fed Cup. Coming into this weekend, Italy had won all five of their previous meetings dating back to 1997.
“I am very proud of my team,” captain Illya Marchenko told reporters.
“Obviously it was a great day for us, almost a perfect day. We are really happy to get that revenge. We are really happy to be in the finals for the first time in our history.
“I’m really glad that we are able to bring this joy, these moments of joy, to our spectators and fans here and back in Ukraine, especially. These are obviously very difficult times for our country,” he added in reference to the ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia.
Ukraine has also defeated Belgium 2-1 this week in the knockout tournament. In the final, they face a tough task against Czechia, which has Linda Noskova and Karolina Muchova on its team. The Czechs have beaten both Great Britain and Spain 2-0.
“The job is not done. Czechia is a massive favourite on paper, so we have nothing to lose in a way,” Svitolina commented.
“We’ll be going with this mindset. Just trying to bring our good game, stay focused on what we have to do tactically. With this, give ourselves a good chance to fight and maybe get the trophy.
Elaborating further, Svitolina spoke about the importance of sports for those in her home country during the ongoing war. She is an ambassador for United24, a fundraising platform organised by the Ukrainian government to support the country.
“In such a difficult time right now with the war ongoing, with the daily attacks on various cities, I think these kinds of wins, any kind of win in sports, it’s just unbelievable,” she said.
“It unites people and just gives them a little break from the daily attacks and the war.”
The final will take place on Sunday at the Shenzhen Bay Sports Centre.
