MINSK, 1 November (BelTA) –Belarus lost to Belgium 1-2 in the first tie of at the Billie Jean King Cup by BNP Paribas Finals (former Federation Cup), BelTA has learned.
Belarusian Aliaksandra Sasnovich and Vera Lapko won the doubles rubber against Elise Mertens and Kirsten Flipkens of Belgium 6-4, 6-3. The match last for one hours 7 minutes.
Before that Belarus lost two singles rubbers in Group B. At first Iryna Shymanovich of Belarus (263) lost to Belgium's Greet Minnen (70) 2-6, 2-6. In the second rubber Belarus' Aliaksandra Sasnovich (88) was defeated by Belgium's Elise Mertens (18) 2-6, 6-4, 2-6.
In the second tie on 4 November Belarus will take on Australia. Belgium and Australia will play each other on 2 November. The winner of the group will face the best in Group D (the Czech Republic, Belgium and Switzerland) in the semifinal.
In the first rubber in Group A, Canada's Francoise Abanda (353) defeated France's Fiona Ferro (105) 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 and then Alizé Cornet (59) tied the score by defeating Rebecca Marino (148) 6-4, 7-6 (7-5). The winner of the tie will be determined in the doubles. Russian tennis players will also play in this group.
More matches in the other groups are:
Group C: Slovakia v Spain
Group D: Czech Republic v Germany
The Billie Jean King Cup is the largest international team competition in women's tennis. It is organized by the International Tennis Federation (ITF). Until September 2020, the competition was called the Federation Cup, but then it was renamed after the legendary U.S. tennis player.
Team Belarus has been playing in the BJK Cup since 1994. Their best ever performance was reaching finals against the United States in Minsk. The U.S. team has won 18 titles, the Czech Republic - 11 titles, and the Australians - 7 titles. In the decisive match in 2019, France beat Australia 3-2. Last season the tournament was not held due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
