Australia captain Alicia Molik believes her unsung tennis girls can beat the world on the Billie Jean King Cup – even with no world-beater of their ranks.
Molik’s spirited workforce demonstrated they might thrive even with out the magic of Ash Barty to encourage them once they reached the semi-finals of final yr’s occasion which is seen because the World Cup of ladies’s tennis.
Now within the post-Barty period, she’s satisfied her outfit of “dedicated and diligent” battlers can go even additional this week, inflicting a sensation by successful the entire week-long occasion within the Scottish metropolis of Glasgow.
“We had a lot of highlights in last year’s event in Prague, a lot of great memories, a lot of success, and having that taste makes us great feel like we want to go a step further this time,” Molik advised reporters on Sunday.
“Absolutely, we have big ambitions. We got close last year and probably what helped us is that Australian tennis players, and this team in particular, are pretty dedicated and diligent, they’re fighters.
“I really feel like we have got the stamina, the combat and the willpower that goes a good distance too when it is the tip of an extended onerous yr, everybody’s drained, and I actually really feel like our workforce can actually step up.
It was a bullish declaration from Molik, whose five-woman workforce – on paper no less than – hardly look to have the ammunition for Australia wanted to elevate the trophy previously often called the Fed Cup for the primary time since 1974.
They are the No.1 seeds however that rating dates again to April, simply after Barty had retired – and it is now right down to a buoyant Ajla Tomljanovic, presently at a career-high world No.33, to spearhead a workforce whose next-best ranked singles participant is Priscilla Hon, at a lowly 153.
Storm Sanders, the world No.236, is prone to be in competition with Hon for the second singles spot, whereas Ellen Perez and the indefatigable veteran Sam Stosur make up the squad.
With Barty on board, the workforce reached the ultimate in 2019, dropping agonisingly to France 3-2 in Perth – nonetheless a painful reminiscence for Molik, Tomljanovic and Stosur.
“Perth was a bit heartbreaking to lose, so absolutely we’d love to try to put some different memories there,” mentioned 38-year-old Stosur, again in BJK Cup motion once more – astonishingly, 19 years on from her debut.
By reaching final yr’s semi-final with out Barty, Molik felt her workforce had proven there actually could possibly be life with out the world No.1.
“Ash’s retirement gives a bit of an opening to every other player in Australia to step up and try to steal that No.1 position in Australia and in the world.
“Ajla’s finished that this yr together with her career-high rating. It’s an incredible alternative for everybody else to pave their very own method and step up.
“We’ve shown our best tennis is top tennis – it’s world-rated and it’s match-winning and tournament-winning.
“I actually really feel our greatest may be very, superb.”
On Tuesday, the Aussies open up towards Slovakia of their first three-rubber tie, earlier than going through Belgium on Thursday, with solely the winners of their three-team group happening to Saturday’s semi-final. The last is about for twenty-four hours later.
