Siniakova leads Czechs to sixth Fed Cup title in eight years

The Czech Republic took a 2-0 lead over defending champions the United States as the Fed Cup Final got underway at Prague's O2 Arena. Making her debut, 19-year-old Kenin pushed Barbora Strycova to three sets on Saturday, before Riske lost to Siniakova, 6-3, 7-6 (2).

The 22-year-old Katerina Siniakova has completed a ideal day for the Czech team, beating Alison Riske 6-3 7-6 in an hour and 38 minutes for her second Fed Cup win over the Americans after toppling Shelby Rogers a year ago in the semi-final.

No team has ever come back from an 0-2 deficit in a Fed Cup final and the Czechs are unbeaten at home in their last 10 ties, dating back to 2009.

The U.S. team, though, had to rely on three Fed Cup newcomers as they were missing Serena and Venus Williams, holders of a combined 30 grand slam singles titles, along with world number six Sloane Stephens and Madison Keys, semi-finalist at both Roland Garros and Flushing Meadows.

At the time of writing, Petra Kvitova was forced out of pre-event training and media commitments with a virus, and her absence would be a tough blow for a team already without world No8, Karolina Pliskova, who is out with a calf injury. But it could be the singles rubbers that determine the result, and fortunately Katerina Siniakova and Barbora Strycova are also ranked 31 and 33 respectively in singles.

"We can only be aggressive and go after it tomorrow", Riske said.

In doubles, the final match of the best-of-five series, Riske and Danielle Collins will play for the United States against the No. 1 doubles pair of Barbora Krejcikova and Siniakova. "It was up and down, nerves", 22-year-old Siniakova said on the court after the match that was just short of the longest rubber -- at four hours flat -- in Fed Cup history.

The hosts are a win away from their sixth title in the last eight editions and their 11th overall, including five as the former Czechoslovakia.

Despite that, she thinks the Czech team - strong favorites against a less experienced American squad -will feel the weight of expectation considering that they will have a partisan home crowd in attendance.

"It is amusing because it is her first (Fed Cup tie) and it is my last one", Strycova said.

"We did not get the result that we wanted but nobody can say that we didn't leave it all out there", usa captain Kathy Rinaldi said.

"For me it was a lot of emotions", Strycova said on court after the win.

Related News:

11 November 2018

A phone and a tablet- Samsung reveals foldable smartphone
Developers can build and launch on the platform, as well as easily integrate cloud-connected, Zigbee and Z-Wave devices. Normally, one doesn't think of Samsung as necessarily being a haven for the worldwide development community.

07 November 2018

Freebies and deals being offered on Election Day 2018
Easton's Bank Street Creamery , 15 S Bank St., is offering a free scoop of ice cream to anyone who has his or her "vote" sticker. However, if you haven't made it to the polls yet, you've got one more chance because November 6 is Election Day.

31 October 2018

Hands-On: 2018 MacBook Air with Retina Display
What is the MacBook Air? Apple has designed a custom aluminum alloy which is being used for the first time in the new MacBook Air. SD card is gone, much to my chagrin, but the 3.5mm headphone jack remains, and there are two USB-C / TB-3 ports on the left side.
12 November 2018

Fears for Russian Federation probe as Trump fires Jeff Sessions
Trump named Whitaker to the acting position on Wednesday after abruptly forcing out Attorney General Jeff Sessions . Healey said in a tweet that a U.S. attorney general "must lead an empowered and independent Department of Justice".

01 November 2018

Islamist Party Calls For Death Of Judges Who Freed Christian Woman
Although Pakistan has sentenced offenders to death under the law, Pakistan has yet to execute anyone for committing blasphemy. In this context, the persistent controversy that has rocked the globe ever since Asia Bibi's conviction can be chronicled.

29 October 2018

Oil falls on oversupply worries despite Iran sanctions
The global equities slide is seeing oil helped along the bearish path as investors flee riskier assets across the board . Brent for December settlement was 53 cents lower at $76.36 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange.
10 November 2018

One dead, another injured after rush hour stabbing attack in Melbourne
One of the injured was reportedly in suspected critical condition with a neck injury, while another had sustained a head injury. The news report above came before police acknowledged that the man was already on the radar of Australian intelligence.

08 November 2018

Women, Muslims, Latinos & LGBT people win in US Midterm Elections
She will succeed the first Muslim congressman, Keith Ellison, who vacated the seat to run for Minnesota's Attorney General. Omar was elected in Minnesota's 5th district, a heavily Democratic area that includes Minneapolis and surrounding areas.

05 November 2018

Apple falls below $1tn despite revenue and profit rise
Apple fetched an average of $793 per iPhone in the quarter, up 28 percent from the same time a year ago . The sell-off accelerated after Apple said it would stop disclosing the number of units sold.
11 November 2018

Tens of Thousands Evacuate as Wildfires Char California Towns
The state's most destructive fire in at least a century has burned down more than 6,700 buildings, nearly all of them homes. In the video posted to Facebook, two people are seen in a vehicle trying to escape a barrage of flames licking the road.

10 November 2018

Lindsey Graham: No 'Holy Hell to Pay' for Sessions Firing
US Attorney General Jeff Sessions has endured more than a year of criticism from Donald Trump over the Mueller inquiry. Department of Justice and headed by former FBI director Robert Mueller ", said the organizers in a release.

31 October 2018

Trump, first lady to visit Pittsburgh after synagogue shooting
The Trump administration has rejected the notion that he has encouraged far-right extremists who have embraced him. Paul Carberry, 55, lives near the synagogue and said Mr Trump should not have visited until the dead were buried.