Ukraine trails the Czech Republic 1-2 in the
Billie Jean King Cup after
Marta Kostyuk defeated
Barbora Krejcikova 3-6 6-1 6-4 with a superb performance.
It was a crucial match that Ukraine needed to win in order to stay alive and Marta Kostyuk stepped up and delivered her finest Billie Jean King Cup performance yet. She lost the opening set 3-6 after Krejcikova played a really solid set hitting 9 winners which was good enough. Kostyuk was a bit erratic to start attempting to win points quickly but it didn't quite work out.
It worked out much better for her in the second set which she won 6-1 an impressive shot-making showcase, blasting 15 winners in 7 games. She had three times as many winners as Krejcikova and it was just a furious comeback by her. The final set saw her play well once again, better than Krejcikova which got her the deserved win.
She broke her opponent midway through but allowed herself to get broken back. Still, she continued to apply heavy pressure and ultimately Krejcikova folded losing the final set 4-6.