Tennis-Ukraine stun holders Italy to reach first Billie Jean King Cup final

Ukraine's Elina Svitolina and Anhelina ​Kalinina swept aside twice defending ​champions Italy in the Billie ‌Jean King ​Cup semi-finals on Saturday, sending the country to the final for the first time and setting up ‌a showdown with Czech Republic. World No. 48 Kalinina laid the foundation for victory with a 6-3 6-4 win over 18-year-old Italian Tyra Caterina Grant, ranked 102 places below ‌her.

Australian Open semi-finalist Svitolina then faced former French Open and Wimbledon runner-up Jasmine ‌Paolini, but the 32-year-old needed little time to stamp her authority on the match, cruising to a 6-2 6-2 win to seal an unassailable 2-0 lead. The world No. 7 broke Paolini ⁠three times ​in the opening ⁠set and added two more breaks in the second to complete the win in one hour ⁠and three minutes.

The victory also gave Ukraine revenge for last year's 2-1 semi-final defeat by ​Italy. It was achieved despite the absence of world No. 10 Marta ⁠Kostyuk, sidelined by a wrist injury. Ukraine now face the Czech Republic, who booked their first Billie Jean ⁠King ​Cup final outing since 2018. Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova and Karolina Muchova secured straight-sets wins against Spain, keeping the Czechs on course for a 12th ⁠title.

Italy lifted the trophy in each of the last two years, including a ⁠2-0 victory over ⁠record 18-times champions the United States in last year's final, to take their tally in the premier women's team competition to ‌six titles.