Issue link: http://itf.uberflip.com/i/1067114
Barbora Strycova beat Sofia Kenin in the opening rubber IT WOULD BE EASY TO LOOK AT THE NEAR- DECADE OF FED CUP BY BNP PARIBAS DOMINANCE BY THE CZECH REPUBLIC AND attribute it to two glittering stars; Top 10 players Petra Kvitova and Karolina Pliskova. But when you capture six titles in eight years, register a 20-2 tie record and have a rubber winning percentage just shy of 70, it cannot all rest on the shoulders of just two players as the demands are simply too great. No fewer than 16 players have featured for captain Petr Pala since the start of the 2011 season, when a squad including Kvitova (who at that stage was yet to win her first Wimbledon title), Lucie Safarova, Barbora Strycova and Kveta Peschke swept Slovakia aside in the World Group first round. That was just the beginning. It should not astonish, therefore, that when Kvitova and Pliskova were suddenly unable to play in the Fed Cup Final in early November, Pala was able to turn to his CZECH MATE Czech Republic showcased their strength in depth to claim a sixth Fed Cup by BNP Paribas title in eight years with victory over the United States. By Nick McCarvel F E D C U P B Y B N P PA R I B A S Katerina Siniakova defeated Alison Riske and then Sofia Kenin to guarantee victory for the Czech Republic 16 ITFWorld // WINTER 2018 ➝