Switzerland erased last year’s final heartbreak in the BJK Cup Final with a 2-0 defeat of Australia on Sunday in Glasgow.
Jil Teichmann and Belinda Bencic got the job done with back-to-back singles success, with Teichmann fighting off Storm Sanders 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 and Bencic applying the final polish 6-2, 6-1 over Ajla Tomljanovic.
The Swiss lost the final a year ago in Prague to Russia; Australia was beaten for the 2019 final by France.
Victory came eight years after Roger Federer and Stan Wawrinka won the Davis Cup for the alpine nation.
“We were finalists last year and we were so heartbroken,” Bencic said. ‘I don’t think I’ve ever cried so much.
“But in the locker Teichmann came to me and said that next year we’re going to take it. And we did! I’m so incredibly proud.”
Teichmann, rotated into the opening rubber by captain Heinz Gunthardt, needed almost two and a half hours to overcome a determined Sanders, ranked 237, who was treated for a calf injury but fought on until a tear-stained end.
The Swiss winner followed up on a previous victory over the Aussie in which Sanders managed just three games.
No. 35 Teichmann went up a break in the second set after a rally lasting 26 shots but eventually lost the set on a double-fault as her opponent levelled at a set each.
In the third, the Swiss again lost a break before salvaging the valuable point for her nation for a winning forehand down the line on match point..
“It’s hard to describe in words,” Gunthardt said. “We didn’t win this just today, it was actually over years.
“A lot of it has to do with heart and this team has a lot of heart, let me tell you.”
The weekend result was a bitter blow for Australia, which is waiting for a first trophy since 1974 – almost half a century ago. They have now lost their last ten finals in the competition.
“I’m extremely proud of my team,” captain Alicia Molik. “It was a phenomenal effort all week from the Aussies.
“We gave it everything. But credit to the Swiss team – it was flawless tennis from Belinda.
“We want to get back to another final. You have to keep chipping away, you can’t be despondent.
“Every year our level grows, every year we play great tennis in this format.
“We’ll return next year and we’ll be even hungrier, no doubt about that. I’m fortunate that I have a group of five mates. They bring out the best in each other.”
Main photo:- Switzerland win BJK Cup in Glasgow by WTATennis.com
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