The 19-year-old made history when she won at Flushing Meadows without dropping a set last September, and Anne Keothavong hailed the incredible accomplishment that nobody could have predicted. “We’ve all known she’s a great talent. She had a promising career ahead of her but I don’t think anyone expected her to do what she did in New York so soon,” the 38-year-old told Sky Sports.
“I think it caught the whole of tennis by surprise and it’s something that is a fantastic story and one that we should continue to celebrate because I’m not sure we’ll see anything like that happen ever again.” The former world number 48 will captain her young squad against a formidable opponent in Czezch Republic who have won the tournament 11 times – the second most of any nation in the tournament’s history.
Their team is slightly depleted with the absence of reigning French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova and two-time Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova. But they still boast a strong outfit with 2020 Olympic silver medalist Markéta Vondroušová, Katerina Siniakov, Karolina Muchova and Tereza Martincova.
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