(Málaga) Italy won its fifth Billie Jean King Cup on Wednesday in Malaga, the first in eleven years, by dominating Slovakia 2-0 in the final of this national team competition.
Posted at 2:39 p.m.
World No.4 Jasmine Paolini won 6-2, 6-1 in the second singles match of the evening against Rebecca Sramkova (43e), a few hours after the 6-2, 6-4 victory of Lucia Bronzetti (78e) contre Viktoria Hruncakova (238e).
Italy's success was much quicker to emerge than in the previous rounds, won in the decisive doubles against Japan in the quarter-finals and Poland of world No.2 Iga Swiatek in the semi-final.
Before this fifth coronation, Italy had already triumphed in 2006, 2009, 2010 and 2013 in the competition which was then called the Fed Cup.
The transalpine selection succeeds Canada, which had precisely beaten the players of Tathiana Garbin in the final of the 2023 edition.
Slovakia, defeater of the most successful nation (United States, 18 crowns) in the first round of the final phase, was looking for a second victory after that of 2002.
Italy's victory puts the two teams back on level terms in their Billie Jean King Cup confrontations (2 wins all). Slovakia won the first two confrontations, in 2002 on hard court and in 2017 on clay and Italy won in 2023 on hard court.
Led by world No.1 Jannik Sinner, the Italian men's team, winner of the Davis Cup in 2023, enters Thursday in Malaga against Argentina in the quarter-finals to try to defend their title.
