Fed Cup 2018 World Group II Play-Off - Japan v Great Britain - 21-22 April

PaulM · Tennis legend

Fed Cup 2018 World Group II Play-Off - Japan v Great Britain - 21-22 April

JonH · All-time great

Thats tough. Looking positively, Jo at least put in performances which suggest she can get back moving up the rankings again.

Being frank, Japan won this as a team, GB had two players effectively and that isnt a team. I think GB got the selection wrong today, should have put Gabi in singles and a loss wouldnt have changed anything other than Heather would have been less tired.

Back to the drawing board

Samson · Lower Club Player

Gutted for the team, truly. I thought we would lose 3-1 so for it to have been so close was a pleasant surprise! I think we are cursed! Hope the team can feel proud with the performance they gave.

blob · All-time great

Are we back to Talinn? Or, are our miserable EUR Group I memories moving in their cycle to a new venue for us next year?

PaulM · Tennis legend

Heather's Fed Cup record is decent enough that you could see why Anne stuck with her today to finish the job. And of course, she shouldn't have lost the first set.

It's more the run of away ties that's really frustrating. I do think we'd have won this at home.

Michael D · All-time great

JonH wrote:
Thats tough. Looking positively, Jo at least put in performances which suggest she can get back moving up the rankings again.

Being frank, Japan won this as a team, GB had two players effectively and that isnt a team. I think GB got the selection wrong today, should have put Gabi in singles and a loss wouldnt have changed anything other than Heather would have been less tired.

Back to the drawing board

And Heather would have been in a MUCH more positive mindset for the doubles, which given her fragile temperament on the court at the moment, I think is exceedingly important, and why I definitely would not have risked her for both the singles and doubles matches. I agree, as stated yesterday, I'd have used Gabi for the second singles today.

I feel for Annie K though. She is going to be replaying her selection decisions for some time now....

-- Edited by Michael D on Sunday 22nd of April 2018 09:48:30 AM

Helen40 · Grand Slam Champion

JonH wrote:
Thats tough. Looking positively, Jo at least put in performances which suggest she can get back moving up the rankings again.

Being frank, Japan won this as a team, GB had two players effectively and that isnt a team. I think GB got the selection wrong today, should have put Gabi in singles and a loss wouldnt have changed anything other than Heather would have been less tired.

Back to the drawing board

Easy to say in hindsight, but Hev could easily have won the singles if she hadn't bottled it, then it would have been the right call.

Michael D · All-time great

Helen40 wrote:
JonH wrote:
Thats tough. Looking positively, Jo at least put in performances which suggest she can get back moving up the rankings again.

Being frank, Japan won this as a team, GB had two players effectively and that isnt a team. I think GB got the selection wrong today, should have put Gabi in singles and a loss wouldnt have changed anything other than Heather would have been less tired.

Back to the drawing board

Easy to say in hindsight, but Hev could easily have won the singles if she hadn't bottled it, then it would have been the right call.

Heather has now lost her last 10 or so matches, and a good number of those she has bottled. If there is one thing you can expect from her at the moment unfortunately, is that at crucial stages in a match, she will choke. I would definitely be thinking about that in planning match ups, since the odds are more likely it will happen than not happen, it is sad to say. I'd have saved her for the doubles only today.

Michael D · All-time great

Now someone or some people are going to have to try and pick Heather up to get her going again, and I don't know who those people are going to be, but she is going to need real serious help now, because she is not going to do this by herself.

JonH · All-time great

Helen40 wrote:
JonH wrote:
Thats tough. Looking positively, Jo at least put in performances which suggest she can get back moving up the rankings again.

Being frank, Japan won this as a team, GB had two players effectively and that isnt a team. I think GB got the selection wrong today, should have put Gabi in singles and a loss wouldnt have changed anything other than Heather would have been less tired.

Back to the drawing board

Easy to say in hindsight, but Hev could easily have won the singles if she hadn't bottled it, then it would have been the right call.

to be fair I did say this yesterday, I think I was the first poster suggesting it. Not that I'm proud, just saying that's what I genuinely thought ( halfway down page 4 of this thread after Heather lost to osaka)

-- Edited by JonH on Sunday 22nd of April 2018 10:00:13 AM

Michael D · All-time great

JonH wrote:
Helen40 wrote:
JonH wrote:
Thats tough. Looking positively, Jo at least put in performances which suggest she can get back moving up the rankings again.

Being frank, Japan won this as a team, GB had two players effectively and that isnt a team. I think GB got the selection wrong today, should have put Gabi in singles and a loss wouldnt have changed anything other than Heather would have been less tired.

Back to the drawing board

Easy to say in hindsight, but Hev could easily have won the singles if she hadn't bottled it, then it would have been the right call.
to be fair I did say this yesterday, I think I was the first poster suggesting it. Not that I'm proud, just saying that's what I genuinely thought ( halfway down page 4 of this thread after Heather lost to osaka)

-- Edited by JonH on Sunday 22nd of April 2018 10:00:13 AM

Yes, you were, and you received support, including from Jaggy.

Helen40 · Grand Slam Champion

JonH wrote:
Helen40 wrote:
JonH wrote:
Thats tough. Looking positively, Jo at least put in performances which suggest she can get back moving up the rankings again.

Being frank, Japan won this as a team, GB had two players effectively and that isnt a team. I think GB got the selection wrong today, should have put Gabi in singles and a loss wouldnt have changed anything other than Heather would have been less tired.

Back to the drawing board

Easy to say in hindsight, but Hev could easily have won the singles if she hadn't bottled it, then it would have been the right call.
to be fair I did say this yesterday, I think I was the first poster suggesting it. Not that I'm proud, just saying that's what I genuinely thought ( halfway down page 4 of this thread after Heather lost to osaka)

Fair enough, my bad, I didn't read your posting time - sorry. I just saw someone else quoting you just now. I would like to have seem Gabi given some sort of chance, but I always think in these situations, we don't really know the conversations that go on behind the scenes.

I'm glad Jo won her's she's been having a bad time confidence wise too, shame about Hev.

JonH · All-time great

Helen40 wrote:
JonH wrote:
Helen40 wrote:
JonH wrote:
Thats tough. Looking positively, Jo at least put in performances which suggest she can get back moving up the rankings again.

Being frank, Japan won this as a team, GB had two players effectively and that isnt a team. I think GB got the selection wrong today, should have put Gabi in singles and a loss wouldnt have changed anything other than Heather would have been less tired.

Back to the drawing board

Easy to say in hindsight, but Hev could easily have won the singles if she hadn't bottled it, then it would have been the right call.
to be fair I did say this yesterday, I think I was the first poster suggesting it. Not that I'm proud, just saying that's what I genuinely thought ( halfway down page 4 of this thread after Heather lost to osaka)
Fair enough, my bad, I didn't read your posting time - sorry. I just saw someone else quoting you just now. I would like to have seem Gabi given some sort of chance, but I always think in these situations, we don't really know the conversations that go on behind the scenes.
I'm glad Jo won her's she's been having a bad time confidence wise too, shame about Hev.

not a problem - as I said not proud and others agreed. I think my main issue was jo and Heather where clearly the best doubles option imo and I just didn't see Heather getting a singles win. Michael explained the reasoning well.

Oh well- hope jo at least builds on this and starts doing well on tour.

ROSAMUND · Futures level

Sorry we didn't make into the next group up. Even if we had there's no guarantee we would have had a home tie. We had the best player in Jo and Japan had the best team. Realistically we do not have the players to perform in the higher echelons. Apart from Jo and Heather the only other active player to have won matches on the WTA main tour since Wimbledon 2016 is Naomi Broady. It is along time ago that Laura Robson or Tara Moore have won matches on the main tour. The likes of Gabi Taylor, Katie Boulter, Katy Dunne and Katie Swan have yet to win any matches on the main tour although they could all do so at some time in the future. Basically we have the same singles players that we had 5 years ago and nobody has stepped into the breech yet to deserve selection.

PaulM · Tennis legend

Ultimately we could have won this had Heather taken the first set in her second singles. Also the girls had game points and break points in the second and third games of the second set in the doubles. Take those and you're looking at a different situation with real pressure on the Japanese pair.

Hopefully both Spain and Ukraine win, but looks like Russia will be joining us for February. If the other two European nations lose, Group 1 will be pretty much impossible to get out of.

The question is where are Gabi and Katie B going to be by then.