The Czech Republic team made quick work of the United States squad on Friday to clinch a spot in the Billie Jean King Cup semifinals in Glasgow, Scotland.
The Czechs earned a 2-1 win in finale of Group D play, but the match wasn’t as close as the score indicates. Two decisive singles results sealed the series, with Marketa Vondrousova topping Danielle Collins 6-3, 6-3 before Katerina Siniakova beat Coco Gauff 7-6 (1), 6-1.
The United States won the meaningless doubles finale, with Madison Keys and Taylor Townsend defeating Karolina Muchova and Karolina Pliskova 6-3, 6-3.
The Czechs finished 2-0 to top the group, with the U.S. going 1-1 and Poland winding up 0-2.
The day’s other match saw Switzerland edge Canada 2-1 to claim the semifinal berth from Group A.
Similar to the Czechs, the Swiss wrapped up their series with two singles wins. Viktorija Golubic rallied past Bianca Andreescu 2-6, 6-3, 6-4, and Belinda Bencic downed Leylah Fernandez 6-0, 7-5. The Canadians took the doubles match, with Fernandez and Gabriela Dabrowski routing Jil Teichmann and Simona Waltert 6-2, 6-1.
Switzerland (2-0) topped the group over Canada (1-1) and Italy (0-2).
In the semifinals on Saturday, Switzerland will oppose the Czech Republic and Great Britain will take on Australia. The final is scheduled for Sunday.
The tournament, formerly known as the Fed Cup, began with 12 teams divided into four groups for round-robin play of series consisting of two singles matches and one doubles match. The group winners advanced to the semifinals.
Billie Jean King Cup group-stage final standings
Group A
1. Switzerland, 2-0
2. Canada, 1-1
3. Italy, 0-2
Group B
1. Australia, 2-0
2. Slovakia, 1-1
3. Belgium, 0-2
Group C
1. Great Britain, 1-1
2. Spain, 1-1
3. Kazakhstan, 1-1
Group D
1. Czech Republic, 2-0
2. United States, 1-1
3. Poland, 0-2
–Field Level Media
