It's funny, at the start of the week (as you might have noticed ...) I was hoping they might manage to find a way to win their group assuming the Swiss were still not on top form (possibly a false hope, as the Swiss have had a very good week so far), but today's result feels like a real triumph because of the way the two younger ones battled through (and even if GB were marginal favs going into the match, in my mind, you can't ignore the fact that they had the no. 1 singles player in the world on the other side of the net, whose experience you'd expect to give Denmark the edge if it got that tight) and the confidence their wins here have hopefully given them.
-- Edited by steven on Friday 4th of February 2011 09:35:00 PM
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GB on a shirt, Davis Cup still gleaming, 79 years of hurt, never stopped us dreaming ... 29/11/2015 that dream came true!
Yes, it does feel like a bit of a result in the circumstances.
Really we weren't close to Switzerland in the singles, and therefore really the match, though who knows what a fit Bally might have done. On the matches that were played Switzerland were clearly deserved group winners.
It was good to see Heather and Joss win the Switzerland doubles match which was potentially at the time certainly still a pretty relevant match for the group and also moreso to come through such a match today when it really definitely did matter to avoid a relegation play-off.
In the end, I think we have to be satisfied at holding station ready to go for it again next year with a team probably including more experienced Heather and Laura.
It would have been so disappointing to come with a stronger team next year but one rung down.
Not that it is necessarily that important though does effect Fed Cup rankings.
But I wonder how they are going to deal with there being 15 teams this year rather than 16 and hence our 3 team group. Do we get to play-off for 5th to 8th ?
Not that it is necessarily that important though does effect Fed Cup rankings.
But I wonder how they are going to deal with there being 15 teams this year rather than 16 and hence our 3 team group. Do we get to play-off for 5th to 8th ?
The way nations were allocated to groups involved the 3 nation group missing out on a 13-15 seed, so I expect that GBR will be regarded as equal with the second placed nations and will play off for 5th-8th (and hence one of the 3rd place nations will be without a match). I can't find anything in the rules and regulations to confirm this though.
Although the match significance is low-key the win could prove useful at some stage, as it counts towards Fed Cup ranking. If our ranking had been high enough to be amongst the top seeds here we would have avoided Switzerland, Poland and Belarus in the group stages - who all duly won their groups