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  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Elina Svitolina closed out a competitive Aussie squad while Fed Cup debutantes Natalia Vikhlyantseva and Rebecca Sramkova sealed impressive World Group II wins over Chinese Taipei and Italy, respectively.

Catch up on how Day 2 went down:

Ukraine 3-1 Australia

Svitolina started off Day 1 with a comeback win over Ashleigh Barty, and picked up where she left off against Daria Gavrilova, taking a 6-3, 6-2 win to lead Ukraine back into World Group I Play-Offs.

Not content to leave Kharkiv empty-handed, Australia pulled off a thrilling three-set win in the doubles rubber, with former Grand Slam finalists Barty and Casey Dellacqua beating Nadiia Kichenok and Olga Savchuk, 6-2, 2-6, 10-8.

Russia 3-1 Chinese Taipei

Coming into Day 2 on level terms, it was up to the experienced Ekaterina Makarova to keep her young teammates ahead in Moscow. Her opponent has had success against big-time Russians in the past, having knocked out then-World No.1 Dinara Safina back in 2009 at the Toray Pan Pacific Open, and was eager for another upset on Sunday.

Twice recovering from deficits against the former World No.85, Makarova edged over the finish line, 6-4, 7-5, opening the door for rising teen sensation Natalia Vikhlyantseva to clinch the tie.

Fresh off a run to the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy semifinal, Vikhlyantseva put down a decisive, 6-1, 6-2 win over Lee Ya-Hsuan.

The win earned praise froum countrywoman and reigning Olympic Gold medalist Elena Vesnina, who thought the youngster handled the situation like an old pro:

Slovakia 3-2 Italy

Italy won their fourth Fed Cup title in 2013, but could be on the verge of relegation into Zonal play after a shocking loss to Slovakia.

Level after Day 1, former World No.5 Daniela Hantuchova earned her first Top 50 win since 2015 to defeat Sara Errani, 6-2, 6-0, setting the stage for a tense fourth rubber between Rebecca Sramkova and Francesca Schiavone.

The 2010 French Open champion declared 2017 would be her last, but couldn’t tap into that inspiration against an on-fire Sramkova, who hit through the Italian veteran in her Fed Cup debut.

Clinching the tie, 6-2, 6-4, Slovakia moved onto the World Group I Play-Offs, while Italy faces a must-win tie to prevent descending into the Euro-Africa Zone for the first time since 1997.

Belgium 3-1 Romania

Belgium pulled off an dramatic win over Romania, with Elise Mertens taking a 3-6, 7-5, 7-5 win over Irina-Camelia Begu.

Mertens started the year debuting in the Top 100 with a title run at the Hobart International, and held her nerve to see off Begu and clinch the tie for Belgium.

Romania roared into World Group back in 2015 with the help of former World No.2 Simona Halep, but with Halep nursing an injured knee, the 2014 French Open finalist could only watch from the sidelines as her team falls to within one match of returning to Euro-Africa Zone I.

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Insider Podcast: Equal Prize Money

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

MIAMI, FLORIDA, USA – On this special Dropshot episode of the WTA Insider Podcast, hear from WTA founder Billie Jean King and 18-time major champion Chris Evert. King and Evert held an impromptu press conference last week at the Miami Open to discuss the issue of equal prize money and equality, which were brought to the fore once again after former BNP Paribas Open CEO and tournament director Raymond Moore’s comments in which he told reporters the WTA Players “ride the coattails” of the ATP when it comes to prize money. Moore has since stepped down from his post.

King and Evert, along with current WTA player Nicole Gibbs, discussed their reaction to the comments, which triggered an unfortunate avalanche of discussion regarding the merits of equal prize money at tennis’ biggest tournaments. The 45-minute conversation was educational, enlightening, and inspiring, and given the fan interest in the press conference, we’re posting the discussion in full.

Evert on the progress in women’s tennis: “If there is a silver lining to all this that’s gone on in the last week, it’s the fact that there has been such outrage from the players and from the media and from the public defending the women’s game. I think from time to time we all need a reminder of the evolution of women’s tennis and the great (indiscernible) and sacrifices every generation has had to make, from Billie Jean to myself and Martina, Steffi to Monica, to Williams sisters. What we’ve done to get the credibility, the respect, and equality that we have now.”

King on the need for inclusion: “To have equal prize money in the majors sends a message. It’s not about the money, it’s about the message. Any time you discount another human being by gender, race, disability, however, we’re not helping ourselves. You want everyone to make a lot. At least I do. We want to make the pie bigger, the marketplace bigger for all, for all of you so you have jobs.

“To argue over the prize money issue, what about when Chris and Martina were playing and their ratings were better than the men? We didn’t go, Oh, we deserve more than the men. No. Let’s just keep it equal and help each other. It’s not a “he” thing or a “she” thing; it’s a “we” thing. I’m telling you, this is the only way the world is going to make it.”

Gibbs on carrying forth King’s message: “I think our generation is very privileged sometimes because we just kind of take it for granted. We think, Okay, it’s all better. We just have to focus on our tennis. That’s what we are told from a very young age, and very few of us feel a responsibility to continue on a path of equality. You have to use the platform to continue down that path of equality. Quality and fairness — many right now think we’re so far down the road and in reality we are not necessarily. There are still so many people, men and women both, making comments that are very counterproductive to our mission of growing the game of tennis, using it as a platform.”

 

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