Japan pull off comeback vs. Romania, make quarterfinals at BJK Cup Finals

1m read 5mo ago

Fran Santiago/Getty Images for ITF

The first team victory in the 2024 Billie Jean King Cup Finals went to Japan, which edged Romania 2-1 on Thursday to reach the quarterfinals of the competition for the first time since 2013.

The start of the competition had been delayed by a day due to severe weather warnings, making Japan against Romania the opening tie of the week. The Romanians got off to a positive start, with Ana Bogdan

beating 6-2, 6-4. Bogdan now holds a 5-1 record against Hibino.

Japanese captain Ai Sugiyama's decision to field No.135-ranked Ena Shibahara

in the No.1 singles position over No.56-ranked paid off in the second rubber. Shibahara, a former doubles No.4 whose focus on singles this year has seen her climb over 400 places in the PIF WTA Rankings, delivered a stellar performance to defeat Jaqueline Cristian 6-4, 7-6(2).

Making her Billie Jean King Cup singles debut after years as a doubles stalwart, Shibahara's prowess at net and eagerness to take the ball out of the air paid off as she came from 3-1 down in the second set.

In the deciding doubles, Shuko Aoyama and Eri Hozumi held off a late comeback attempt by Monica Niculescu and Elena-Gabriela Ruse

to seal the tie 6-1, 7-5 after saving nine out of 10 break points. The Japanese duo won their first Hologic WTA Tour title together in Tokyo on home soil last month and dominated a 23-minute opening set. The Romanians raised their game in the second set, but Aoyama and Hozumi gained the first break at 4-3.

Closing out the match proved a little more complicated. Ruse saved two match points serving down 5-3, and a missed Aoyama volley squandered a third on Hozumi's serve in the next game -- the only time the Japanese pair dropped serve in the contest. But Aoyama and Hozumi steadied themselves to break Niculescu for 6-5, before Aoyama served the match out at love.