Canada and Italy will face each other in Sunday’s title match of the Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge Finals in Seville, Spain.
In the deciding doubles rubber, Leylah Fernandez and Gabriela Dabrowski beat seven-time Grand Slam doubles champions Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova 7-5 7-6(3) to book Canada’s first ever final appearance in the women’s World Cup of Tennis.
Earlier on Saturday, 11-time champion Czech Republic scored the opening singles win with Krejcikova’s 6-2 6-1 defeat of Canadian teenager Marina Stakusic, while Fernandez leveled the tie at 1-1 courtesy of a 6-2 2-6 6-3 triumph over Marketa Vondrousova, which was her first victory over a Top 10 player since the 2021 US Open.
In Saturday’s other semifinal, Italy earned a 2-0 victory against Slovenia as Martina Trevisan and Jasmine Paolini defeated Kaja Juvan and Tamara Zidansek, respectively. Italy now continues their bid for a fifth Billie Jean King Cup title and first since 2013.
Thanks to the support of title sponsor Gainbridge, the 2023 Billie Jean King Cup Finals will offer an unprecedented player prize money purse of $9.6 million.
