The Swiss team misses out on a place in the final tournament of the Billie Jean King Cup. They also lost their second match in the qualifying round, losing 2:1 to Ukraine.
12.04.2025, 19:41
12.04.2025, 21:25
SDA
The chances of Switzerland securing a place in the final tournament in Shenzhen, China, in September were tiny in Radom, Poland, all the more so given the line-up of the Ukrainian team. Captain Heinz Günthardt's team would have had to win all three matches against the Eastern Europeans without losing a set to make the impossible possible. The Swiss team had already suffered a heavy defeat on Thursday with a 3-0 loss to Poland.
At least Céline Naef delayed the decision. The 19-year-old from Schwyz, ranked number 178, pulled off the surprise and defeated Marta Kostjuk, the world number 25, 6:4, 7:6 (7:1) in the first match of the day. In the fifth singles match of this team competition, the player from central Switzerland emerged victorious for the first time.
Céline Naef played superbly - there was absolutely no sign of the big difference in the world rankings throughout the match. The player from central Switzerland was not only convincing in terms of her game. She also showed fighting qualities. She won both sets after trailing by a break. In the first, she trailed 3:4, in the second she even made up for a service loss twice. Céline Naef could have spared herself the tie-break in the second set if she had used one of the two opportunities to decide the match at 5:4.
Jil Teichmann defied Jelina Svitolina for a set at 4:6, 2:6. The Ukrainian, who is ranked 78 places higher in the world as number 18, made the difference in the first round with a service break for 5:4. The differences were clearer in the second round. Jil Teichmann did not get her serve through once.
In the final doubles match, Céline Naef and Susan Bandecchi were beaten 4:6, 6:3, 5:10 by Nadja Kitschenok and Katarina Sawazka.
