Asia/Oceania I: China P.R. and Korea Rep. head to the Play-offs
13/04/2024 12:48
China, P.R. and Korea, Rep. secured promotion to the 2024 Billie Jean King Cup Play-offs after a thrilling final day of action in Asia/Oceania Group I at Moon Island Clay Park in Changsha, China
By Kevin Palmer
India had the chance to seal second spot in Pool A and book their place in the Play-offs, but a defeat against New Zealand ended their hopes and Korea, Rep. secured the place.
It seemed as if India was on course to secure progress to the Play-offs for the first time since 2021 when Rutuja Bhosale beat New Zealand’s Monique Barry 6-2 7-6(5).
That gave Ankita Raina a chance to wrap up the victory and promotion for India, but she lost 6-2 6-0 against Lulu Sun in a contest where she held serve on just two occasions.
Raina and Prarthana Thombare then lost the decisive doubles match against Paige Hourigan and Erin Routliffe to leave Korea, Rep. able to claim the final promotion spot.
It was a cruel ending for a spirited Indian side that secured a valuable win against Korea, Rep. in their encounter on Friday, with both nations finishing with a record of three wins and two defeats in Pool A.
Korea, Rep. progress on account of the number of match-wins they achieved over their five matches, with 11 compared to India’s eight.
It was another positive day for hosts China, who concluded a perfect run of results in Pool A in front of their home fans by beating Korea, Rep. in a decisive doubles contest.
World No.56 Lin Zhu set China on their way to victory with a 6-2 6-3 win against world No.682 Dabin Kim, before Korea, Rep. were given hope of mounting a comeback when Xiyu Wang was forced to withdraw from her match against Sohyun Park.
The tie was decided by the doubles and Hanyu Guo teamed up with Wang to secure a 6-0 6-0 victory against Kim and Park to complete a clean sweep of five straight wins as they topped the group.
China will now be a nation to watch in the Play-offs later this year, with their world No.7 Qinwen Zheng not playing this week and world No.38 Yue Yuan another player that could return to a team that performed so well on home soil.
India and New Zealand will be back in Asia/Oceania Group I once again after finishing third and fourth respectively, while Chinese Taipei and Pacific Oceania have been relegated to Asia/Oceania Group II.
