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Great Britain’s hope of causing a marvel in their initial attack against Kazakhstan in the Billie Jean King Cup final ended in defeats for Katie Boulter and Harriet Dart.
Great Britain secured a position as host after the Lawn Tennis Association stepped in to level the occasion at Glasgow’s Emirates Arena and, especially without the injured Emma Raducanu, lacked the strength of almost each and every team.
They spoke with a bit of luck on Monday about their chances of using the merit of the house to create a surprise, but Boulet’s 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 loss to the fiery Yulia Putintseva was a blow and Dart was defeated 6-1, 6-4. through Wimbledon. champion Elena Rybakina.
They may still qualify with a win over Spain on Thursday, but it will be a dead game if Kazakhstan win their match against the Spanish on Wednesday.
Kazakhs can claim even the loudest supporters, with their unwavering membership outnumbering the sparse British crowd.
Although Boulter is ranked almost 80 times below Putintseva at 130, she has been a consistent performer in the big games and this has emerged as the possibility of scoring for Great Britain.
The 26-year-old from Leicestershire got off to a wonderful start, breaking her opponent blank in her first two service games, but losing her way at the set time and a 4-0 deficit in the decision maker proved a lot. A mountain too big to pass up.
It’s just Boulet’s momentary defeat in 11 games in the competition, with his first appearance against the same player in a draw at London’s Copper Box in 2019.
She said: “I went out to swing and she came up with a game plan that suited me a little bit, I think, at first.
“Then she completely replaced her game plan and I started allowing her to play the way she (wanted), and she maneuvered me on the field I was ahead on. “
Boulter took a medical break after three referee games for treatment on his left calf, but ignored any consideration of his fitness for Thursday.
Of the disappointed crowd, Boulter said: “I felt there was an intelligent atmosphere. The Kazakhs will bring their drums and it will be a fight with the noise point because they need to win that one. I think they probably did it today. “
“I just appreciate you supporting me right now. It would be great to see other people a little louder out there, for sure. “
Rybakina has had his ups and downs since winning his first Grand Slam title at the All England Club, but he has one of the toughest games on the tour and probably had too much for Dart, ranked 95th.
Dart dug after a set and 2-0 and had two chances to lead 5-4 at the time, but Rybakina won 4 problems in a row and then served the victory.
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