Sunday was a historic day for Switzerland as the team won the Billie Jean King Cup title for the first time.
In a rematch of last year’s semifinals. Jil Teichmann and reigning Olympic champion Belinda Bencic combined for singles wins in Glasgow, Scotland to give the Swiss an insurmountable 2-0 lead against Australia.
In the opening match, Teichmann outlasted this week’s breakthrough player Storm Sanders 6-3, 4-6, 6-3. Bencic then followed with a swift 6-2, 6-1 win over Ajla Tomljanovic to clinch the trophy.
Sweet Swiss redemption 🇨🇭🏆
— Billie Jean King Cup (@BJKCup) November 13, 2022
2021 runners-up @swiss_tennis re-write the history books with their first ever title#BJKCupFinals | @BelindaBencic pic.twitter.com/V0M1m59cPP
"We were finalists last year and we were so heartbroken," Bencic said on court after wrapping up the week. "But in the locker room [Teichmann] came to me and said 'Next year, we’re going to do it, we’re going to take it.’ And we did, I’m so proud."
Switzerland, the runner-up last year as well as in 1998, completed the dream week by going 9-1 in matches in Glasgow. Viktorija Golubic and Simona Waltert also contributed to the team effort in Scotland.
Seven-time champion Australia was seeking its first title since 1974.
Teichmann thriller ™️
— Billie Jean King Cup (@BJKCup) November 13, 2022
6-3 4-6 6-3 doesn't tell half the story, what a match!#BJKCupFinals | @swiss_tennis | @jilteichmann pic.twitter.com/jHNf5Fwhpl
In last year’s Billie Jean King Cup semifinal, Teichmann dismissed fellow left-hander Sanders 6-0, 6-3. However, Sanders, a Top 10 player in doubles but ranked No.237 in singles, came into their rematch at the end of an eye-opening week. In Glasgow, she won all three of her previous singles matches as well as going 2-1 in doubles.
Sanders’ form extended into Sunday’s match, where her strong volleys and fighting spirit brought her back from a set and a break down to push her match with Teichmann into a decisive third set.
However, Teichmann gritted through an 11-minute game to break for 3-2 in the decider, and she finished off more points aggressively as the set progressed. An ace gave Teichmann a 5-3 lead, and she closed out the challenging match by firing a forehand winner down the line to break for the victory after 2 hours and 18 minutes.
“It was a great battle,” Teichmann said on court afterward. “Storm is playing very good the whole week, I was expecting a big fight. So here I was, getting the fight, and I’m super happy I got the point.”
Taking it all in 😂#BJKCupFinals | @swiss_tennis pic.twitter.com/3y1e0U1ZlR
— Billie Jean King Cup (@BJKCup) November 13, 2022
Bencic followed with a command performance, taking 1 hour and 15 minutes to dispatch Tomljanovic in a showdown between the respective nations' top-ranked players. Bencic converted half of her 12 break points.
Bencic broke for 5-2 after converting her fifth break point of a 10-minute game, then finished off the first set with a volley winner from her signature backhand wing.
In the second set, a forehand return winner gave Bencic an early break for 2-1, and last year’s Olympic gold medalist never looked back as she finished off the week in Glasgow.
"We didn't win this just today; it was this week, it was actually over years, we tried to get better and better at it," team captain Heinz Günthardt. said "You saw how many close points there were; who knows why we win some and lose some. A lot of it has to do with heart, and this team has a lot of heart."
I love talking to the younger generations.
— Billie Jean King (@BillieJeanKing) November 11, 2022
These @BJKCup Ball Kids are wise beyond their years. #BJKCupFinals pic.twitter.com/KtzfjgMDKG
Meanwhile, the draw for next year's Billie Jean King Cup Qualifiers took place on Sunday. They will be held April 14-15, 2023.
This weekend, 16 countries faced off in home-and-away ties, with the eight winners of those ties moving into the 2023 Qualifiers draw, along with the 10 nations that finished between third and 12th place in Glasgow this week.
The nine winners from the matchups below will join this year's finalists Switzerland and Australia and the host nation (or if already qualified, a wild card) in next year's Billie Jean King Cup Finals.
Check out these contests 👌📆
— Billie Jean King Cup (@BJKCup) November 13, 2022
Mark the 2023 Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge Qualifiers in the diary#BJKCup pic.twitter.com/itwLGw3ZDi