Switzerland will travel to Argentina for the Billie Jean King Cup play-offs with a skeleton team. The team leader for the first time is Simona Waltert - and she is in excellent form.
14.11.2025, 05:00
14.11.2025, 06:55
SDA
Heinz Günthardt is confident ahead of the difficult task in Cordoba. "On paper, we're not the favorites, but I wouldn't call us outsiders either," says the Swiss captain. His team must finish first in a group of three against Slovakia and hosts Argentina if they are to play at the highest level next year.
His optimism has a name: Simona Waltert. Without Belinda Bencic, Viktorija Golubic and Jil Teichmann, the 2022 world champions, the 24-year-old from Graubünden is leading the Swiss team for the first time. She was a substitute in Glasgow at the time, but only played once in a singles match in 2024, where she lost to Poland's Iga Swiatek in two sets.
Tournament victory at the Rio Open
However, Waltert is enjoying excellent fall form. At the end of September, she won an ITF tournament of the highest category in Lisbon, and since then she has made two quarter-finals, a semi-final and, to top it all off, a tournament victory in Rio at Challenger tournaments - all on clay. The reward is a jump to 86th place in the world rankings.
Waltert has been in South America since mid-October and definitely has no problems with jet lag. "It's the first time I've done a South American tour like this and I'm really enjoying it," she says. "It was a very cool few weeks." Waltert is a bit of a late bloomer, her potential has been known for some time. For two years, she has been training mainly in Neuchâtel with her coach Stéphane Bohli, a former Swiss Davis Cup player. Now she is achieving consistently good results for the first time.
If Waltert can continue her brilliant form, Switzerland will not be without a chance in Cordoba. "There are no high-flyers like Swiatek or Rybakina in this field," explains Günthardt. On paper, no team is superior to the others. Argentina can count on Solana Sierra, number 66 in the WTA rankings, while Slovakia can count on number 74 Rebecca Sramkova. Alongside Waltert, the two are the only players in Cordoba to be ranked in the top 120.
The Swiss Achilles heel is likely to be found in the position behind Waltert. Ticino's Susan Bandecchi (WTA 240), a finalist at an ITF tournament in Great Britain at the beginning of November, is likely to have the best chance of playing in the second singles. Celine Naef (WTA 266) has lost her last seven matches on the tour, while Valentina Ryser (WTA 274) has not won in four matches. Günthardt does not want to reveal his cards just yet. He first wants to wait for the first match on Friday between Slovakia and Argentina.
It's going to be loud
A lot of weight on Simona Waltert's shoulders. But she is confident. "It's a great honor to play for my own country. And I feel good." She is expecting a heated atmosphere, especially on Sunday against the hosts. "An Argentinian player told me a few weeks ago that it was going to be loud," she says with a laugh.
The Swiss will kick off the tournament on Saturday against Slovakia. Both matches comprise two singles and a doubles match and start at 3 p.m. Swiss time. Only the group winner will play for the Billie Jean King Cup title next year, the other two teams will only play at the second-highest level.
