Great Britain fell painfully short of a fifth appearance in the Billie Jean King King Cup final, as a tiebreaker win for the crucial duo in Glasgow spurred Australia into contention for the cup.
Playing their first semi-final in 41 years after the impressive defeat of Spain on Thursday, Ann Keothavong’s side had high hopes of emulating Sue Parker and Virginia Wade, who led the United Kingdom to the final in 1981.
Heather Watson lost her rubber opener 6-4 7-6 (3) to Storm Sanders, but Harriet Dart followed up with a win over 13th seed Paula Padusa by defeating Agla Tomljanovic 7-6 (3), 6-2 to take her to the . the wire.
Doubles duo Alicia Barnett and Olivia Nichols were the revelations of the week for the hosts on their international debut, but failed to score a third win, losing 7-6 (1) 6-7 (5) (10-6). Sanders and Sam Stosur.
Barnett and Nichols capitalized on their luck by the tournament’s best crowd at the Emirates Arena, holding two steady points at 6-5 in the first set after recovering from a break.
Barnett missed his serve in the second set, but they fought back in a tense tiebreak – helped by some shocking fouls from Stosur – to force the first 10-point decision.
The British duo struggled 3-6 for a draw, but the Australian finished on four straight points to secure their place against Switzerland or the Czech Republic on Sunday.
While the defeat hurts the British team, they have exceeded expectations and there should be optimism, especially if Emma Raducanu can balance herself next season, this does not have to be unique.
Dart, in particular, would leave Glasgow believing he could raise his rankings well above the current level 98, having faced three of the world’s greatest hitters and defeated two of them.
Dart made the most of Tomljanovic’s slow start, which saw Serena Williams retire at the US Open, completing where he left off against Padusa and opening a 5-2 lead.
She was unable to serve the set and lost a set point at 5-4, but played better in the tiebreak against her struggling opponent.
She was Dart up front the whole time and continued to hit the ball with superb power, exhausting Tomljanovic and taking another great win.
Playing first in the absence of injured Radocano, Dart took the opportunity, saying, “It’s a bit of a wild game. Growing up, I dreamed of being on the team and representing my country. Honestly, it’s a great honor to be here not to mention playing as the number one player.”
“I’m really happy with the way you did good performances there.”
Watson denied feeling the pressure of anticipation against a player who ranked below 100 in the singles and instead said that the early start of the match – Great Britain had already played in the evening – had affected it.
But whatever the reason, it was clear from the start that he wasn’t the same Watson who barely lost the ball in the 6-0, 6-2 defeat of Nuria Barezas Diaz.
Sanders played well above his own singles rating of 237, using clever tactics to prevent his opponent from finding any rhythm.
She requested medical time at the end of the first set for a treatment in her right hip area and at first seemed to be in some discomfort, but Watson missed the chance to advance 3-0 in the second set and from there the Australian resumed her climb. 🇧🇷
“I’m very disappointed that I didn’t get the result I wanted for the team today, but I did my best,” Watson said. “It was still a good match.”
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