Canada through to Billie Jean King Cup finals with 3-2 win over Belgium
Canada's Fernandez, Dabrowski top Minnen, Flipkens in deciding doubles match
Grinding through adversity made a big win that much sweeter for some of Canada's top women's tennis players this weekend.
After losing their highest-ranked player to injury and watching a teammate sidelined, the Canadians persevered to earn a 3-2 win over Belgium at a Billie Jean King Cup qualifier in Vancouver.
It's the first time in four meetings that Canada has bested Belgium in the women's World Cup of tennis competition.
"A lot of ups and downs, a total roller-coaster ride," doubles specialist Gabriela Dabrowski said of the two-day competition. "We thought we were down and out. We weren't. And I think that just goes to show the resiliency of every single one of our players on this team. It's been really special."
Dabrowski and Leylah Fernandez secured Canada's spot in November's finals with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Kirsten Flipkens and Greet Minnen in doubles action.
Earlier in the day, Fernandez of Laval, Que., rallied for a gritty 4-6, 7-5, 6-2 win over Ysaline Bonaventure and Minnen downed Toronto's Katherine Sebov 6-2, 3-6, 6-3.
Canada breezed through the first four points of Saturday's one-hour, four-minute doubles match, taking a 1-0 lead and didn't turn back. The two sides rallied several times, with the home nation consistently finding ways to come out on top.
WATCH | Fernandez, Dabrowski win deciding doubles match:
Dabrowski showed why she sits seventh in the world women's doubles rankings midway through the first set, deftly tapping a backhanded shot over the net to end an extended back-and-forth and put Canada up 5-1.
Playing her third match in two days, Fernandez looked anything but tired, darting across the court to scoop up balls and blast them back at the Belgians using her powerful forehand.
"Playing with [Dabrowski] is always a privilege," Fernandez said. "She's such a great doubles specialist. She sees the court so beautifully and I get to experience that with her. It's something I would like to learn and get better at along the way."
The 86th-ranked Belgian, who captured a 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 win over Vancouver's Rebecca Marino on Friday, took a 4-1 lead in the first set as Fernandez fought to find her serve, chalking up four double faults in the first five games.
As the match progressed, the 20-year-old Canadian began mixing up her shots and luring her opponent to the net, forcing errors. She cut the deficit to 4-3 before Bonaventure took the set.
The players repeatedly traded points across a tightly contested second, with neither stealing the momentum.
Fernandez took a 6-5 lead thanks to a challenge that ruled Bonaventure's shot just out of play. The Canadian crowd roared as she returned to the court from a changeover and Fernandez responded by breaking Bonaventure in the deciding game.
WATCH | Fernandez tops Bonaventure:
The former U.S. Open finalist continued to dominate in the third jumping out to a 3-0 cushion.
Bonaventure scored a break point late in the set to make it 5-2, but Fernandez responded with a break of her own to clinch the two-hour, 26-minute match.
Bonaventure was emotional after the doubles match, wiping tears from her cheeks as she spoke to reporters.
"It's very disappointing because I have the feeling that I was so close to bring the point for the team," she said.
The second singles showdown of the day saw Minnen down Sebov in three sets.
The match was initially scheduled as a battle between Marino and Wickmayer but both players were swapped just before the match after fighting through ailments on Friday.
Marino felt ill during her match and Canadian captain Heidi El Tabakh didn't want to risk putting her on the court Saturday.
"Rebecca played an extremely tough match. It was draining physically and mentally," she said. "I thought playing Kat, someone who's fresh, was a good decision."
WATCH | Minnen defeats Sebov to level qualifier:
Wickmayer rolled her ankle Friday, an injury that made serving painful.
"It's one thing to lose but another thing to get injured and not be able to help your team on the second day," Wickmayer said. "So it was a really tough day for me, but I tried to be there and support the team as much as I could... We all gave it everything we got. Nothing else we could do, really."
Sebov was a late addition to Canada's roster, replacing Canada's top-ranked player Bianca Andreescu after she tore two tendons in her ankle at the Miami Open on March 27.
Andreescu, the world No. 27, sat courtside in Vancouver, cheering on her teammates.
YEZZZIRRRR <a href="https://t.co/IVtrrPoj6V">https://t.co/IVtrrPoj6V</a>
—@Bandreescu_The 24-year-old Sebov climbed to a career-high 136th spot in the rankings last week after a loss to Swiss powerhouse Belinda Bencic at the Charleston Open on April 5.
She admitted, though, that playing in front of a Canadian crowd was "overwhelming."
"I'm used to more of a quiet setting, being on court 17 and no one's watching," Sebov said. "So it's a little bit of an adjustment, just staying focused even though there's a lot going on, a lot of noise and lights flickering. I think it's just something I need to get used to."
The Vancouver qualifier is one of nine being held around the globe this week, with winners advancing to the finals in a yet-to-be announced location.
Last year, Canada swept Latvia in a qualifier and advanced to the finals in Glasgow, where they topped Italy before falling to Switzerland in group play. Switzerland went on to win the world title.
Pegula lifts U.S. into finals
Jessica Pegula sent the U.S. into the Billie Jean King Cup finals Saturday with a 6-1, 6-3 victory over Austria's Julia Grabher.
The victory gave the Americans a 3-0 lead and clinched the best-of-five tie in Delray Beach, Fla. The third-ranked Pegula also won her singles match Friday after No. 6 Coco Gauff, playing in her hometown, beat Grabher in the opener.
France, Spain, the Czech Republic, Kazakhstan, Germany, and Italy also secured berths in the finals, scheduled for Nov. 7-12 at a site to be determined. Those nations will join reigning champion Switzerland, 2022 runner-up Australia and one wild-card recipient at the finals, with a couple spots still be determined Saturday on the second day of the two-day qualifiers.
All of those nations have won the Cup except Kazakhstan. But it has a chance now after reigning Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina won both her matches in a 3-1 home victory over Poland, clinching a second consecutive finals berth for Kazakhstan with a 6-4, 6-2 victory over Magda Linette on Saturday in Astana.
Kazakhstan are into the Finals for the 2️⃣nd time! 🇰🇿🇰🇿🇰🇿<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BJKCup?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BJKCup</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/ktf_kz?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ktf_kz</a> <a href="https://t.co/gM71V3jTM0">pic.twitter.com/gM71V3jTM0</a>
—@BJKCup"It was a difficult match today. I felt so tired that even at the end, during the on-court interview, I didn't understand the questions to be honest. I felt better yesterday, maybe some sort of fatigue from flying and a recent return from America to Europe," Rybakina said.
"But, as I say, I am delighted that Kazakhstan have once again made it to the Billie Jean King Cup Finals and we will be able to fly our nation's flag on this big stage."
The tie between Italy and Slovakia in Bratislava, Slovakia, was on the only one to go the distance. After the hosts won two straight matches to battle back from a 2-0 deficit, Martina Trevisan and Elisabetta Cocciaretto pulled out a 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 victory over Viktoria Hruncakova and Tereza Mihalikova in the doubles match.
Other results
Caroline Garcia secured the winning point for France in a 3-1 victory at Britain by outlasting Harriet Dart 6-1, 6-7 (10), 6-1.
2019 French Open runner-up Marketa Vondrousova gave the Czech Republic a 3-1 victory over Ukraine in a tie that was moved to Turkey after Russia's invasions of Ukraine.
Nuria Parrizas-Diaz won for the second straight day as Spain beat Mexico 3-1; and Germany rallied to beat Brazil 3-1.
Slovenia came back from 0-2 down to beat Romania in a tie that needed an extra day to finish the qualifying round because rain halted the decisive doubles match after the teams split four singles matches in Koper, Slovenia.
Resuming Sunday morning at 3-3 in the first set, the hosts completed their comeback with a 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 win. It was the eighth time in the history of the Billie Jean King Cup that a team overcame an 0-2 start to win and the first since France beat Italy 3-2 in 2015.
With files from The Associated Press
