They have started in Malaga finals Billie Jean King Cup women's tennis representative competition. IN match The Poles will play on Friday against the hosts, Spain, to advance to the quarterfinals. The meeting was originally scheduled to start on Wednesday at 17, but due to heavy rainfall and local flooding in this part of the country, it was postponed to Friday. The start is scheduled for 10.
The match against Spain will consist of the following matches:
- Jessica Bouzas Maneiro (No. 55 in the WTA ranking) – Magdalena Fręch (25 WTA)
- Paola Badosa (12 WTA) – Iga Świątek (2 WTA)
- Badosa/Sara Sorribes-Tormo – Magda Linette/Katarzyna Kawa
If there is a draw after two matches, the doubles competition will decide everything. If one of the teams leads 2-0, it is possible that the doubles match will be canceled.
This is the only victory of Świątek over Badosa so far
The greatest interest will be in the competition between the two leaders of the national team – Paula Badosa and Iga Świątek. The ladies have faced each other only twice so far, and the balance is 1-1. The first match, during the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, was won by the Spanish. A few months later she was on top Shelf at the 2021 WTA Finals in Guadalajara.
In Mexico, both Świątek and Badosa made their debuts in the WTA season-ending tournament. They joined the group together with Aryna Sabalenka and Maria Sakkari. The Spanish and Polish tennis players faced each other in the last group match. Badosa was already guaranteed to leave the group, and Świątek knew that regardless of the match result, she would not advance to the semi-finals, because she lost to both Sabalenka (6:2, 2:6, 5:7) and Sakkari (2:6, 4:6).
Although the match had no significance for the group results in Guadalajara, the tennis players came out on the court very motivated. Badosa quickly broke Świątek, but she responded the same way (2:2). At the end, the Spaniard had the set ball when her opponent served, but our representative brilliantly defended herself from losing the game. In the next heart gem fans The Polish women trembled when, running to the drop shot, she fell on the court and her racket fell out of her hand. Fortunately, she quickly recovered and ended the set with a fantastic forehand, 7:5.
The second game started better for Badosa, who surprised Świątek, took away her serve and jumped to 3-1. And then to 4:2. In the meantime, the Pole missed as many as seven opportunities in the fourth game to break her opponent and make up for the losses. When the fans in the stands were slowly preparing for the third set, Świątek had a great finish – she went from 2:4 to 6:4. She already used the first match ball after a great return and could raise her fist in the air with joy.
This was Świątek's debut victory in a WTA Finals event, but that ended her participation in the tournament. Badosa and Sakkari left the group and were eliminated in the semi-finals in Guadalajara, and in the final of the tournament Garbine Muguruza defeated Anett Kontaveit.
A year later, our tennis player reached the semi-finals of the WTA Finals 2022 in Fort Worth, last season she was the best in Cancun, and a few days ago she did not make it out of the group in Riyadh.
What will it be like on Friday?
In Friday's match against Badosa, Świątek will be able to ensure that our team advances to the BJKC quarterfinals – provided that Magdalena Fręch defeats Jessica Bouzas Maneiro first. If they advance to the next round, the Poles will face the Czechs, who arrived in Malaga weakened due to the withdrawal of Karolina Muchowa.
The White and Reds appear in the finals of the team tennis competition for the third time in a row, but Świątek will play in this event for the first time. In 2022 and 2023, our best tennis player did not compete for the national team at the end of the season due to the tight competition calendar. Broadcast of the Spain – Poland match on TVP Sport.