MALAGA, Spain — Ashlyn Krueger and Taylor Townsend saved six match factors however in the end misplaced the decisive doubles match as the US was defeated 6-3, 3-6, 10-8 by Slovakia and was eradicated 2-1 within the first spherical of the Billie Jean King Cup Finals early Friday.
Krueger and Townsend misplaced after rallying from 9-2 down within the third set in opposition to in opposition to Tereza Mihalikova and Viktoria Hruncakova in a match that ended near 1 a.m. in Spain.
Townsend had given the U.S. the primary level by defeating 17-year-old Renata Jamrichova 7-5 6-4, however Rebecca Sramkova evened the tie with a 6-2, 7-5 win over Danielle Collins within the second singles match.
Slovakia will face Australia within the quarterfinals Sunday.
Japan reached the quarterfinals for the primary time since 2013 after rallying to defeat Romania 2-1.
Japan superior when Eri Hozumi and Shuko Aoyama defeated Monica Niculescu and Elena-Gabriela Ruse 6-1, 7-5 within the deciding doubles match.
Ana Bogdan had put Romania forward with a 6-2, 6-4 win over Nao Hibino within the first singles match of the day however Ena Shibahara pulled Japan degree with a 6-4, 7-6 (2) victory over Jaqueline Cristian.
Japan will face Italy within the quarterfinals.
The primary match between Japan and Romania had been moved again two hours due to a extreme climate alert that was in impact within the Malaga area till early within the day. The climate alert had already compelled the opening assembly between Spain and Poland to be pushed again from Wednesday to Friday, when Germany can also be going through Britain.
The Billie Jean King Cup Finals is happening about two weeks after a strong storm brought on flash floods that killed greater than 200 individuals within the Valencia area, east of Malaga.
The Worldwide Tennis Federation introduced a donation to the Spanish Purple Cross to assist aid and restoration efforts within the area, and Spanish participant Paula Badosa mentioned she is going to donate half of her prize cash to assist the victims.
Each the Billie Jean King Cup Finals and the Davis Cup Finals are happening within the southern Spanish metropolis, with the lads’s competitors starting subsequent week, additionally on the Palacio de Deportes.
It’s the first time that the ladies’s staff match is happening on the similar venue because the Davis Cup and with overlapping dates. And for the second yr in a row, it would provide equal prize cash to the lads’s competitors.
