The Billie Jean King Cup Finals get under way on Wednesday, although you may struggle to realise.
Such is the ridiculous nature of the tennis calendar, that the tournament begins while the ATP Finals are ongoing, while its last two days will overlap with the start of the Davis Cup Finals – the equivalent men’s event.
That’s a real shame for fans of both the women’s game and team tennis, which often produces some classic matches with players playing for their nation, not simply personal gain.
For those who do tune in – the action is being televised on Tennis Channel International, with the BBC also showing Great Britain’s matches – you’ll see a new format in operation this year.
Gone are round-robin groups and we’re back to a straight knockout draw with four of the 12 teams receiving a first-round bye.
The draw bracket is already set so we can plot a potential route to the final for each team – more on that below.
As for the Malaga venue, it’s a Greenset court which has been laid, while the balls are Wilson US Open Regular Duty. Spanish captain Anabel Medina has described conditions as “a bit fast”, but tournament director Conchita Martinez insists: “The conditions will not change from last year. The players were quite comfortable and happy then.”
They should be too strong for Germany in round one and victory would set up a clash with the Canadians.
Leylah Fernandez carried them far last season but their price looks weighted too heavily on that effort 12 months ago. On paper, it’s hard to look at the team and conclude ‘this is a really strong line-up’.
Katie Boulter is ranked higher than Fernandez and is in good form having made the final in Hong Kong recently, while Emma Raducanu has big potential as the second singles player.
The Americans may prove a tougher obstacle to overcome but they could be an awful lot stronger with Danielle Collins not in the same class as the absent Coco Gauff or Jessica Pegula.
They have a weakness in the second singles spot and while their doubles line-up should be good, that’s not given as Taylor Townsend and Caroline Dolehide are not regular partners on the tour.
GB came within a tie-break of the 2022 final and are worth a small bet here at 14/1.
More realistic winners are ITALY.
They have landed on the other side of the draw but look to have a good path to the semis – a first-round bye meaning they will meet one of the two rank outsiders, Japan or Romania, in the last eight.
Any semi-final would be against hosts Spain, Poland or Czechia. The latter two are a shorter price than Italy, yet only one can make the last four and so the Italians looks the value here at 8/1.
They have the second-highest ranked singles player in the field in Jasmine Paolini, while their doubles team of Paolini and Sara Errani looks the best on show – the pair have been regular partners on the tour and qualified for the recent WTA Finals.
Yes, there’s an obvious weakness in the second singles spot but Martina Trevisan has raised her game in this competition before, playing a big part in last season’s run to the final, winning four of her five singles. Italy also have Elisabetta Cocciaretto to consider, a player ranked only just outside the top 50.
The Poles and Czechs are certainly capable of beating Italy but are far from bombproof so, given the prices, a bet on Italy is the call.
Posted at 1430 GMT on 11/11/24
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