Venus Williams and CoCo Vandeweghe give US the lead in Fed Cup

Venus Williams and CoCo Vandeweghe gave the United States a 2-0 lead in their Fed Cup World Group quarter-final tie against the Netherlands.
Williams had no problems easing past Arantxa Rus as she won the opening rubber 6-1, 6-4 to give the hosts the early advantage in Asheville, North Carolina.
With the win, the seven-time Grand Slam winner became only the fourth American after Billie Jean King, Chris Evert and Lindsay Davenport to win 20 or more Fed Cup singles matches.
“It’s never easy and it’s always a challenge,” Williams said. “On paper, today I looked like I should win but it was a battle and I‘m glad to get through that.”
World number 17 Vandeweghe had a more difficult encounter as she had to come from a set down to beat Richel Hogenkamp 4-6, 7-6 (8-6), 6-3.
Former world No 1 Serena Williams is set to make her return to competitive tennis after giving birth as she has been pencilled in to compete in the doubles alongside Lauren Davis.
Meanwhile, it is all square in the Belarus-Germany tie in Minsk after Aryna Sabalenka beat Tatjana Maria 4-6, 6-1, 6-1 to give the hosts the lead before Antonia Lottner levelled things for Germany with a 7-5, 6-4 win over Aliaksandra Sasnovich.
It is also 1-1 in the tie between Belgium and France as Elise Mertens beat Pauline Parmentier 6-2, 6-1 to give Belgium the lead, but Kristina Mladenovic then beat Kirsten Flipkens 6-2, 6-4.
The Czech Republic have a commanding 2-0 lead over Switzerland after Petra Kvitova beat Viktorija Golubic while Barbara Strycova got the better of Belinda Bencic.
Latest
-
WTA Tour
Heather Watson ends her quarter-final drought with win in Thailand – ‘It was just survival of the fittest’
Heather Watson will now face Chinese seventh seed Xinyu Wang.
-
Tennis News
Toni Nadal shares thoughts on fans’ hostility toward Novak Djokovic as well as Rafael Nadal’s future
Toni Nadal on why Novak Djokovic has so many detractors.
-
Tennis News
Stunning LTA numbers confirm tennis participation is booming in Britain
New figures have revealed that there has been a 47 per-cent increase in tennis participation in clubs and parks across Britain.
-
WTA Tour
Aryna Sabalenka’s 2023 tennis schedule: Where is she competing next and her season so far…
A look at Aryna Sabalenka’s possible tournaments for the 2023 season.
-
News
Serena Williams welcomes Tom Brady to ‘retirement world again’ as she opens up about her final match ‘regret’
“Sad to see you go,” Serena Williams told Tom Brady.
-
Tennis News
Elina Svitolina urges IOC to ‘stick to banning Russian and Belarusian athletes’ for Paris 2024 Olympics
Elina Svitolina wants a united front when it comes to sanctions imposed against Russia and Belarus.
-
Tennis News
Marion Bartoli latest to criticise Elena Rybakina’s coach Stefano Vukov – ‘I just can’t take that any more’
Marion Bartoli basing her opinion on Elena Rybakina’s coach Stefano Vukov on incidents she witnessed herself.
-
Australian Open
Australian Open viewing figures need context amid Novak Djokovic snipes
TV viewing figures for Australian Open may appear to be disappointing, yet raw figures only reveal part of the story.
-
Tennis News
Nick Kyrgios on crutches as his manager gives fitness update
Everyone is “really, really pleased” with Nick Kyrgios’ recovery.
-
WTA Tour
Iga Swiatek’s 2023 tennis schedule: Where is she competing next and her season so far…
A look at Iga Swiatek’s possible tournaments for the 2023 season.