Canada beats Italy to win its first Billie Jean King Cup

This Sunday, Canadians Leylah Fernandez and Marina Stakusic won their first Billie Jean King Cup of the history of the North American country. The athletes beat Italians Jasmine Paoline and Martina Trevisan in the grand final in Seville.

Fernandez, 21 years old and world number 35, obtained the point which gave the title to Canada by beating Paoline (30th) in 2 sets to 0 (6/2 and 6/3).

In the first singles match, Stakusic, 18 years old and only 258th in the WTA rankings, surprised Trevisan (43rd) with splits of 7/5 and 6/3, thus winning her first victory over a top 50 player.

Canada succeeds Switzerland as champions, who were eliminated in the group stage of this year’s Billie Jean King Cup.

This competition, considered the women’s equivalent of the Davis Cup, is the successor to the Fed Cup, which Canada never managed to win. Italy, vice-champion of this edition, has not lifted the trophy for a decade. The country has already won the tournament four times (2006, 2009, 2010 and 2013).

Benjamin Allen

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