Jasmine Paolini led Italy to their fifth triumph at the 2024 Billie Jean King Cup, as she secured the needed win to overcome Slovakia.
Both finalists at the 2024 Billie Jean King Cup Finals were a bit surprising. While Italy entered the event with the World No. 4 player in singles, who happens to be also a Top 10 player in doubles, on the roster, they lacked power in their second singles player.
That meant that the vast majority of the weight was often on Paolini's shoulders, as she had to deliver for her country when it mattered. Slovakia, on the other hand, were huge underdogs in every tie they played.
Sensationally, the Slovak team outplayed the United States, Australia, and Great Britain to reach the final of the competition. In the final, however, they were once again underdogs, and it showed already in the first match.
Italy's Lucia Bronzetti, ranked 78th in the world, took on World No. 238 Viktoria Hruncakova from Slovakia. While the Slovak player certainly possesses more firepower, her movement significantly betrayed her in this match.
In the opening set, the Italian player did a great job reading her opponent's serve. Earlier at the event, against Kimberly Birrell, Hruncakova hit 15 aces, but the Italian player limited her to only three aces, and she was able to also put the vast majority of those serves back in play.
Lacking movement, Hruncakova greatly struggled under that kind of pressure, and it showed as she was broken multiple times despite having chances in the opening set. When down 2-3, the Slovak player had two break points, but she missed both returns.
Bronzetti was, therefore, able to win the first set 6-2, but her opponent demonstrated her qualities in the second set. Hruncakova was hitting every corner of the court, and very quickly, she led 4-2 and 40-15 in the second set of the match.
What followed afterward was certainly a difficult watch for every Slovak fan. Bronzetti won 14 out of the last 15 points in the second set, stealing it from Hruncakova to win the match 6-2, 6-4.
After that, it was Jasmine Paolini's time to shine. Like against Poland, she could end the tie with a win in singles, and it was in her best interest to do so. Had she lost, the Italian would likely have to dress up again to play in doubles as well.
She took on Rebecca Sramkova, who is one of the breakthrough players of the 2024 season. The World No. 43 has been playing some inspired tennis in the past few weeks, reaching the final in Monastir, winning a title in Hua Hin, and playing the final in Jiujiang.
On top of that, she beat Danielle Collins, Ajla Tomljanovic, and Katie Boulter at the Billie Jean King Cup Finals, demonstrating how good of a player she really is.
But in this match, she was far from matching Paolini's qualities. The Italian player was completely unstoppable. Every now and then, Sramkova got to a minor semi-chance, but the Italian almost immediately erased it.
After only an hour of play, Paolini won the match 6-2, 6-1 to secure her country's first Billie Jean King Cup win since 2013.