The United States women’s team remains the most decorated team in the history of the Billie Jean King Cup competition with 18 titles and 12 runner-up finishes. However, in this century, the country has been able to lift the BJK title just once in 2017, defeating Belarus 3-2 in the final. But guess what? A former WTA icon, who is leading the squad of stars like Jessica Pegula, Taylor Townsend, and Emma Navarro this month in Shenzhen, has pledged to finally end the drought.
Lindsay Davenport, who has been a part of America’s BJK Cup victories on three occasions (1996, 1999, and 2000), is the Captain this time. She now wants to get back on the winning habit once again. After a hard-earned win against Kazakhstan this week, the former World No.1 revealed her true ambitions. “We didn’t come here just to reach the semifinals; this is just the first step in what we knew would be a tough week, so we are thrilled to return to the court this Saturday.”
“We will be very attentive to what happens tonight, ready to face whichever team in the semifinals.” Well, their next match is against Great Britain in the semis. But before the next fight, the Captain took a moment to acknowledge the brilliance of her squad members, especially Pegula, Townsend, and Navarro. The latter provided a solid initial lead through her singles win against Yulia Putintseva with a score line of 7-5, 2-6, 7-6(6). However, Elena Rybakina gave a strong response from the opposing team, earning a one-sided victory against Pegula (6-4, 6-1).
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Undoubtedly, the 2024 US Open finalist was under pressure to deliver in the deciding match. It was a doubles encounter between Rybakina-Putintseva and Pegula-Townsend (World No.1 doubles player). Guess what? Pegula found a chance to redeem herself as she and Townsend dominated the duo of Rybakina and Putintseva in straight sets with a score line of 6-2, 7-6(1) in 1 hour and 25 minutes. With an overall lead of 2-1, they sent their country into the last four round.
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Showering praise on all three WTA stars, Davenport said, “Emma was exceptional in finding a way to win her match; I was never sure she would win. We knew how important this match was to gain momentum, although Rybakina played very well, and there wasn’t much Jessica could do. Finally, we knew we had a great advantage in doubles; we have two of the best in the world in this category,”
Even Pegula and her doubles partner Townsend couldn’t resist sharing their honest feelings on this emphatic win. After 2021, it is the first time that America has entered the semis at BJK Cup Finals.
Jessica Pegula, Taylor Townsend speak on their winning performance against Kazakhstan
Jessica Pegula was already in a great form courtesy her stint at the US Open. She managed to reach the semis in New York, for a second-straight season, before losing to eventual winner Aryna Sabalenka. When it comes to the Billie Jean King Cup, however, her morale was down after losing against Rybakina in straight sets. But she promised herself to make a return for her country while teaming up with compatriot Townsend.
“I took it as a challenge; I wanted to redeem myself a bit against her, try to help my team. Although I couldn’t achieve the goal in singles, I did manage to do it in doubles.” Speaking on playing with the No.1 doubles star after a while, the World No.7 added, “It had been a long time since I played with Taylor, so it was fun to reunite. We exceeded our opponents’ game plan, two tough opponents, luckily we know each other quite well.”
On the other hand, Townsend also echoed similar thoughts while reflecting on the deciding battle. “I felt that throughout the match, we were doing the right things, although the opposing pair started to do much better in the second set, they changed some things and became more dangerous.” The 2025 Australian Open doubles champion underlined,“We were very focused on doing the right things, having great energy to keep the team together, along with Lindsay on the bench. Flowing with this energy always helps the whole team; we had a great time, especially to get the victory.”
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On Saturday, Team USA will lock horns with Great Britain at the Shenzhen Bay Sports Centre Arena. The British team advanced past Japan after Sonay Kartal beat Ena Shibahara 6-3,7-6 and Katie Boulter swept aside Moyuka Uchijima 6-2,6-1.
Which country will eventually make it to the summit clash to end its longtime wait to capture the coveted trophy? Only time will tell.