Jasmine Paolini clinches Italy's first Billie Jean King Cup title since 2013, defeats Slovakia in final
Paolini led Italy to a 2-0 victory over the Slovaks, defeating Rebecca Sramkova to clinch her country's first team victory in over a decade.
MALAGA, Spain (AP) — Two-time Grand Slam finalist Jasmine Paolini capped a breakthrough season by leading Italy to its first Billie Jean King Cup title since 2013 on Wednesday, defeating Rebecca Sramkova 6-2, 6-1 to seal a 2-0 victory over Slovakia in the final of the women’s team competition.
The No. 4-ranked Paolini was the runner-up at the French Open in June and at Wimbledon in July, making her the first woman since Serena Williams in 2016 to get to the title matches at Roland Garros and the All England Club in the same season. Before this year, Paolini, who is 28, had lost in the first or second round in all 16 career appearances at majors.
She also teamed with Sara Errani to win a doubles gold medal at the Paris Olympics in August. They were lined up to play in the concluding match against Slovakia, but it wasn’t needed because Italy clinched the best-of-three series by sweeping the two singles matches.
Lucia Bronzetti took Wednesday’s opener for Italy by a 6-2, 6-4 score against Viktoria Hruncakova before a crowd that included International Tennis Hall of Famer and equal rights pioneer Billie Jean King herself.