'22 BJK Cup 11/8 - 11/13

[ashkor87]

Happy to see Bencic playing well..court seems medium to fast, suits her..sad that Krejcikova is injured, she was really hitting her stride, would have given Czech sn edge..Pliskova is past her best now, don't expect much from her..now any of these 4 teams could win, though Suisse certainly seems the strongest...

[Deuce]

They were saying that the court is slow, actually.

When the players were bouncing the ball before serving, you heard a very hollow sound - it is not the sound of a solid base (like concrete, etc). It sounds more like what wood sounds like.

[ashkor87]

I say the USA. It is a strong team, they do have at least two players that truly do not like to lose (Coco and Collins) and if Mc-Coco reunite for the doubles, they are a top notch team.

I find US teams don't care much about team events where they are representing their country, so you get some strange performances, like Madison's today...

Americans are the most individualistic people on earth..playing for a group or nation doesn't come naturally..which is why, I think, the US historically underperforms in Davis Cup, BjK cup etc. It just doesn't motivate Americans enough..

[ponchi101]

Well, I gather you mean recent history, because the USA has the most wins in both competitions 38 wins/29 RU in DC, 18 wins/12 RU in Fed/BJK cup.
And the USA won the DC cup as recently as 2007, before entering the decline in the sport, and the Fed cup as recently as 2017.
I agree that Jimmy Connors never warmed up to the event; it was not his cup of tea. But Mac clearly said, at the peak of his career, that if it was DC, "just tell me when and where". Agassi, Sampras and Courier all won it, and Sampras' stopped playing when, after his 1995 DC heroics versus Russia, he came back to no fanfare and literally page 32 of the Sports Illustrated issue of that week (paraphrasing, he said "If this is how much people here in the USA care about the Dc, why should I?").
I will agree: for some countries, this is huge. The women in Czechia play they hearts out for it. For the Argentinean men, it was "the white whale", until they go it. But if you see the list of recent players for the USA, it has been their top players. They do not send team B for the DC or BJK cup.

[ti-amie]

[ti-amie]

[ti-amie]

[ti-amie]

SEMI-FINAL RESULTS

Australia defeated Great Britain 2-1

Storm Sanders (AUS) d. Heather Watson (GBR) 6-4 7-6(3)

Harriet Dart (GBR) d. Ajla Tomljanovic (AUS) 7-6(3) 6-2

Storm Sanders/Samantha Stosur (AUS) d. Alicia Barnett/Olivia Nicholls (GBR) 7-6(1) 6-7(5) [10-6]

Switzerland defeated Czech Republic 2-0

Viktorija Golubic (SUI) d. Karolina Muchova (CZE) 6-4 6-4

Belinda Bencic (SUI) d. Karolina Pliskova (CZE) 6-2 7-6(6)

Belinda Bencic/Jil Teichmann (SUI) v Katerina Siniakova/Marketa Vondrousova (CZE) – not played

FINAL SCHEDULE

Sunday 13 November

14:00 GMT – Billie Jean King Cup final – Switzerland v Australia



The players representing each team will be announced one hour prior to the tie. Please note: the draw for the 2023 Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge Qualifiers takes place at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow at 13:00 GMT on Sunday. Follow the draw live on BillieJeanKingCup.com and the competition's social media channels.

[ashkor87]

Well, I gather you mean recent history, because the USA has the most wins in both competitions 38 wins/29 RU in DC, 18 wins/12 RU in Fed/BJK cup.
And the USA won the DC cup as recently as 2007, before entering the decline in the sport, and the Fed cup as recently as 2017.
I agree that Jimmy Connors never warmed up to the event; it was not his cup of tea. But Mac clearly said, at the peak of his career, that if it was DC, "just tell me when and where". Agassi, Sampras and Courier all won it, and Sampras' stopped playing when, after his 1995 DC heroics versus Russia, he came back to no fanfare and literally page 32 of the Sports Illustrated issue of that week (paraphrasing, he said "If this is how much people here in the USA care about the Dc, why should I?").
I will agree: for some countries, this is huge. The women in Czechia play they hearts out for it. For the Argentinean men, it was "the white whale", until they go it. But if you see the list of recent players for the USA, it has been their top players. They do not send team B for the DC or BJK cup.

True..but if it had been merely capability, there have been years when there was no reason why the US would not win, but they never had their A team..Serena, for instance...

[ti-amie]

[ashkor87]

Rinaldi has compounded the problem with poor decisions- why field Coco just after a disastrous run at the YEc, when her confidence must have been low? In the past, she has repeatedly Sloane, who is probably the worst FedCup player (relative to her own capability, of course!).

[ashkor87]

So now it is Switzerland vs Australia...both highly motivated teams..but The Swiss are simply playing better right now...Bencic is a champion and Golubic is playing like one..
Their win over Czech was not surprising, given Pliskova,'s poor form lately and the fact that Krejcikova is missing, injured..
(Feels wierd that krejcikova is czech's best singles player,,)

[ponchi101]

Do you consider Belinda to be a player with "class"? (as per your definition).

[ashkor87]

Bencic has class, yes, but she has not performed up to her ability, should have won a major by now...
Re bjk, Tomljanovic is not playing that well..losing to Dart?

[ashkor87]

Well, I gather you mean recent history, because the USA has the most wins in both competitions 38 wins/29 RU in DC, 18 wins/12 RU in Fed/BJK cup.
And the USA won the DC cup as recently as 2007, before entering the decline in the sport, and the Fed cup as recently as 2017.
I agree that Jimmy Connors never warmed up to the event; it was not his cup of tea. But Mac clearly said, at the peak of his career, that if it was DC, "just tell me when and where". Agassi, Sampras and Courier all won it, and Sampras' stopped playing when, after his 1995 DC heroics versus Russia, he came back to no fanfare and literally page 32 of the Sports Illustrated issue of that week (paraphrasing, he said "If this is how much people here in the USA care about the Dc, why should I?").
I will agree: for some countries, this is huge. The women in Czechia play they hearts out for it. For the Argentinean men, it was "the white whale", until they go it. But if you see the list of recent players for the USA, it has been their top players. They do not send team B for the DC or BJK cup.

If Serena and Venus had turned out regularly for the US, how would anyone have ever beaten them?!