ITF

ITFWORLD WINTER 2015 19 www.itftennis.com OF FED CUP I t might have been the fourth time in five years that the Czech Republic hoisted the Fed Cup trophy aloft but this time it felt slightly different. Contrary to their last two title victories, it was not plain sailing for the hosts. They were pushed right to the line by a Maria Sharapova-led Russian team and forced to rely on previously untested players in Karolina Pliskova and Barbora Strycova to get them over it. In Pliskova a star was born. In just her second Fed Cup by BNP Paribas tie, the 23-year-old stepped up to be the second singles player, filling Lucie Safarova's shoes as the world No. 9 rested on the sidelines with a wrist injury. Pliskova took to the court at the sold-out O2 Arena in Prague on Sunday having lost to Sharapova the day before, undaunted by the task ahead of her. Only a victory would keep her nation alive in the final, something she duly delivered twice over the coming hours. "I wasn't thinking about the score, I just took it like a match," she said. "I'm not nervous from the people or stressed. I'm taking the advantage and I think the people really helped me." The last time the two nations met — in the 2011 Fed Cup by BNP Paribas Final in Moscow — proceedings evolved in an almost identical fashion. It was one-all at the end of day one then after the four singles rubbers had been split at two apiece, a doubles rubber was required in which the Czechs prevailed. Russia's Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Elena Vesnina were veterans of that final and unfortunately they couldn't turn their luck around, leaving Prague on the losing side once again. In fact, it was worse this time as neither player contributed a point to their nation's tally. Two singles losses for Pavlyuchenkova — against Petra Kvitova and Pliskova — combined with a doubles defeat alongside Vesnina took her Fed Cup total win-loss record to 9-9 and marked a weekend she would probably rather forget. Russia's two points came courtesy of Sharapova, who certainly did her bit in an attempt to add a Fed Cup title to her list of achievements. As she had in Russia's 4-0 first round victory over Poland, she rose to the occasion, weathering a partisan crowd and winning both her matches. "It's an incredible atmosphere. You see a lot more Czech flags than Russians but in my mind I see red, white and blue and I turn it in my mind as the Russian flags," said the five- time Grand Slam champion. It was all square at the end of day one with Kvitova and Sharapova both predictably recording victories; however it wasn't straightforward for either player. Kvitova got off to a slow start against world No. 28 Pavlyuchenkova and had to battle back from a set down to make sure she extended her winning Fed Cup run to eight singles matches. It might have been ugly in the first set but the Czech player hit the lines in the second and third sets and was relieved to triumph 26 61 61. "It was nerves," explained Kvitova. "It was really difficult for me to turn it round. When I stepped on the court I was so nervous, I was really tight. My legs were very heavy and I couldn't move well so that was probably the key." Sharapova didn't have it all her own way either, she produced nine double faults and was broken twice, but she nailed her forehands and backhands to take down the strong hitter Pliskova 63 64. It was the first live rubber loss for the Czechs since the 2014 first round against Spain. Petra Kvitova defeated Pavlyuchenkova on day one Elena Vesnina and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova had the lead in the final match

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