Aussies to ‘embrace' underdog tag
Australia will happily 'embrace' the underdog tag in Thursday's Billie Jean King Cup qualifying battle against Kazakhstan in Brisbane.
The Australians' hopes of topping their three-team group and reaching the Cup finals could very hinge on their best-of-three tie – which consists of two singles matches and one doubles contest – against the Kazakhstanis at Pat Rafter Arena.
Of the three Group D nations, that also include Colombia, Kazakhstan has the two highest placed singles players – Elena Rybakina (10) and Yulia Putintseva (23).– in the world rankings.
Rybakina was the Wimbledon champion in 2022 and reached the final of the 2023 Australian Open. She also had fond memories of Pat Rafter Arena, having won the 2024 Brisbane International crown.
The highest ranked singles player in Australia's team is Kimberly Birrell (61), ahead of Maya Joint (78) and Ajla Tomljanovic (79).
'We don't mind a challenge,' Australia's non-playing captain Sam Stosur said.
'If we're going to get called the underdogs we'll embrace that.
'There are no guarantees it'll go either way, but all you can do is do your best that you can do that day, put your best foot forward … and hopefully it goes our way.
'You can create enormous upsets in this competition, as we've seen over many years.
'It's a tough ask … but playing the World Cup of tennis shouldn't be easy. You should have to fight for it, put your best players on the court and give your best from first point to last point.'
As of Wednesday afternoon, Stosur was yet to announce which two players would contest Thursday's singles matches.
'It's always a tough decision, and this time around it's no different,' she said.
Kazakhstan captain Yuriy Schukin wasn't entirely comfortable with his team being regarded as the favourite.
'We know that the Australian team is very strong, very solid, so we just have to focus on our game,' Schukin said.
'We're not thinking about rankings because in team competitions, you never know what's going to happen.
'We feel confident with such a strong team, but we know our opponent has very experienced payers as well.'
Rybakina was delighted to be back in Brisbane.
'Definitely it helps (having tasted success at Pat Rafter Arena), but maybe the court's changed a little bit,' she said.
'It feels a little faster than usual, (which) is better for me but you need some time to adjust.'
Gold Coast-raised Birrell said the guidance of Stosur, who won the US Open in 2011, would be crucial to Australia's hopes.
'We're so lucky to have someone as experienced as Sammy leading us,' Birrell said.
'We absolutely lean on her for her advice, and even just her presence and calmness on court, to see her sitting on the bench, and to lean on her at the change of ends – it's awesome.'
Australia will also meet Colombia on Saturday, with Kazakhstan to take on the South American nation on Friday.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
![2025 Bett1open: Sabalenka [1st] vs. Rybakina [11th] Prediction, Odds and Match Preview](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gannett-cdn.com%2Fauthoring%2Fimages%2FDataSkriveSportsbookWire%2F2025%2F04%2F16%2FSSBK%2F83116869007-14991234.jpeg%3Fauto%3Dwebp%26crop%3D1199%2C676%2Cx0%2Cy73%26format%3Dpjpg%26width%3D1200&w=3840&q=100)
![2025 Bett1open: Sabalenka [1st] vs. Rybakina [11th] Prediction, Odds and Match Preview](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fall-logos-bucket.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fusatoday.com.png&w=48&q=75)
USA Today
2 hours ago
- USA Today
2025 Bett1open: Sabalenka [1st] vs. Rybakina [11th] Prediction, Odds and Match Preview
2025 Bett1open: Sabalenka [1st] vs. Rybakina [11th] Prediction, Odds and Match Preview In the Bett1open quarterfinals on Friday, Aryna Sabalenka takes on Elena Rybakina. Sabalenka has -190 odds to earn a spot in the semifinals with a win over Rybakina (+145). Tennis odds courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook. Odds updated Thursday at 10:35 PM ET. For a full list of sports betting odds, access USA TODAY Sports Betting Scores Odds Hub. Aryna Sabalenka vs. Elena Rybakina matchup info Tournament: Bett1open Bett1open Round: Quarterfinal Quarterfinal Date: Friday, June 20 Friday, June 20 Court Surface: Grass Watch the Tennis Channel and more sports on Fubo! Sabalenka vs. Rybakina Prediction Based on the implied probility from the moneyline, Sabalenka has a 65.5% to win. Sabalenka vs. Rybakina Betting Odds Sabalenka vs. Rybakina matchup performance & stats


News24
3 hours ago
- News24
World No 1 Sinner suffers shock loss at Halle grass court event
Defending Halle champion Jannik Sinner suffered a surprising second-round defeat to Alexander Bublik It was the Italian world No 1's first loss to a player outside the top 20 since 2023. Sinner recently lost an epic French Open final to Carlos Alcaraz where he held three match points. For more tennis news, visit our dedicated section. Defending champion Jannik Sinner lost his second-round match on grass at Halle on Thursday to Kazakhstan's Alexander Bublik, the Italian's first tournament since his French Open final defeat. The world number one fell 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 to the 45th-ranked Bublik for the 23-year-old's first loss to a player ranked outside the top 20 since the summer of 2023. A few days before his defeat to Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz in the title match at the French Open, Sinner had easily dispatched Bublik in the quarter-finals at Roland Garros, dropping only six games. On Thursday, 10 days before Wimbledon, Bublik claimed his second victory in six ties against Sinner. 'We are tennis players and we try to win every match we play but it is a special one,' Bublik said. 'I had never beaten a No 1 in the world. It is an accomplishment.' Sinner, who had beaten Yannick Hanfmann in straight sets in the first round, cruised through the first set against Bublik without facing a break point. TAKE A BOW BUBLIK! 🤩 Alexander Bublik becomes the first player outside of the Top 20 to defeat Sinner since Cincinnati 2023 (Lajovic) #TWO25 — Tennis TV (@TennisTV) June 19, 2025 Sinner had three break points at the start of the second set but Bublik held and then went on the attack, hitting 20 winners in the set and gaining the break he needed in the sixth game. The 28-year-old broke Sinner's serve in the third with a flashing forehand. 'I had an amazing forehand to break in the third set and then I kept serving,' Bublik said. 'On grass, if you lose your serve, it is maybe tough and I am a guy who doesn't lose a lot of serves. I just kept serving and putting him in uncomfortable positions and it worked well.' 'He is an unbelievable player and I was not thinking that I could beat him,' said Bublik. 'But I had a few chances and executed them well.' The Kazakh will play Tomas Machac in the quarter-finals after the Czech beat Hungarian Fabian Marozsan 6-2, 6-3. Earlier world number three Alexander Zverev rallied from a set down to see off Italy's Lorenzo Sonego. The 28-year-old German won 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7/2) against the 46th-ranked Sonego and next plays another Italian, Flavio Cobolli for a place in the semi-finals. A finalist in Halle in 2016 and 2017, Zverev recorded his fifth victory in as many meetings with Sonego, a year after beating him at the same stage of the same competition. Sonego took advantage of his only chance to break in the first set at 4-3. The German struggled throughout to break his opponent's serve. Zverev dug deep in the second set, leading 5-4, to win the set before dominating the tiebreak in the final set. Argentina's 63rd ranked Tomas Martin Etcheverry also reached the quarter-finals after a three-hour duel against fourth seed Andrey Rublev 6-3, 6-7 (4/7), 7-6 (8/6). The Argentine saved two match points in the tiebreak of the deciding set to set up a meeting with Russia's Karen Khachanov.
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Yahoo
Coco's false start on grass as Wimbledon bid looms
Newly crowned French Open champion Coco Gauff has been stunned on her return to action following her French Open victory, losing to Chinese qualifier Wang Xinyu 6-3 6-3 at the Berlin Open. World No.2 Gauff, who won at Roland Garros less than two weeks ago for her second grand slam title, amassed 25 unforced errors and seven double faults in her loss to Wang on Thursday. Gauff had a bye to the second round at the grass-court tournament, a warm-up for Wimbledon. An incredible performance! Wang defeats the reigning Roland Garros champ for the biggest win of her career! #BTO — wta (@WTA) June 19, 2025 Wang, ranked No. 49, said she would have been pleased just with the first set, considering the level of her opponent. "After I won the first set, I just told myself, 'okay, let's take a minute and enjoy this, I'm playing the French Open champion, and I won the first set'," said Wang, who next plays Spain's eighth-seed Paula Badosa. "No matter how the second and third go, I was like, 'okay, let's just enjoy it for a second.' I'm really happy with how I played today. I was serving good and putting a lot of pressure on the return, especially second-serve return." Aryna Sabalenka, also playing for the first time since losing to Gauff in the Paris final, completed a 6-2 7-6 (8-6) win over Swiss Rebeka Masarova to reach the quarter-finals, concluding a match that had been suspended on Wednesday because of slippery conditions. When the match resumed, world No.1 Sabalenka was broken at the start of the second set and found herself 3-1 and 4-2 down. She kept her cool, however, and broke back with a fine volley to force a tiebreak. Sabalenka also squandered two match points before sealing her victory at her next opportunity when her opponent sank a simple mid-court forehand into the net. The top seed will next face former Wimbledon champ Elena Rybakina. Czech Marketa Vondrousova, the 2023 Wimbledon champion, needed three sets over two hours and 20 minutes to break the resistance of Russia's Diana Shnaider 6-3 6-7 (3-7) 6-3 win and will face lucky loser Ons Jabeur, the two-time Wimbledon finalist, in the last eight. At the Nottingham Open grass-court event, two-time defending champion Katie Boulter, the fiancee of Australian No.1 Alex de Minaur, was given a real scare before battling past fellow Briton Sonay Kartal 6-4 1-6 7-5 to reach the quarter-finals.