Team USA won a tricky quarterfinal tie against Kazakhstan in the Billie Jean King Cup.
Emma Navarro kicked things off with a thrilling three-set win over Yulia Putintseva before Elena Rybakina leveled things up at 1-1 following her win over Jessica Pegula.
Pegula and Rybakina then returned to the court for the doubles, alongside Taylor Townsend and Putintseva.
Securing the win in straight sets, 6-2, 7-6 [7-1], Pegula and Townsend booked their side a place in the semifinals of the Billie Jean King Cup.
After the match, Townsend shared how she felt playing doubles with the world number seven.
Taylor Townsend says she and Jessica Pegula had ‘great energy’ in Kazakhstan win
During their post-match press conference, Townsend reflected on her and Pegula’s big win over the Kazakh team.
“I felt like during the match we were doing the right things. The other team started playing a little bit better and doing some things differently. You kind of expect that on the court,” she said.
“We just raised our level, committed to the things we were doing before that were working. We were just focused on doing the right things, having great energy.
“We had great energy on the sidelines from our team and Lindsay [Davenport] on the bench. That always helps a lot when there’s so much positivity flowing.
“We really had a great time out there. It feels great to get the win.”
Pegula then shared how she managed to recover from her defeat in singles to produce an excellent performance in the deciding doubles tie.
“I kind of knew whatever happened, I’d be in for doubles. I had to kind of shift my mindset really quickly,” she said.
“But I’ve done it before. I played team events. I’ve played singles and doubles, where I’m usually playing both.
“I just took it as a challenge and wanted to kind of redeem myself a little bit out there against her, try and help my team get a win. Even though I wasn’t able to do it on the singles court, we had a chance to take it in doubles.”
Pegula enjoyed her time out on the court with Townsend, as the pair secured an impressive straight-sets win.
“I haven’t played with Taylor [Townsend] in such a long time, so that was fun to get back to playing with her. It was a lot of fun,” she said.
“We went over the game plan of who we were playing, who the opponents were. We both knew each other pretty well, no matter who the matchup was. It was a quick shift, change of clothes, and a little food. You just want to go out there and get the win.”
The pair were then asked how much practice they had managed to get in this week, in the lead-up to the match
“We played, like, four games,” said Pegula.
“I feel with Tay and I, when we get back out there… I always love playing with a lefty. Makes my life a lot easier. I think our games complement each other really well.
“I think Taylor, she’s an amazing doubles player. She could probably play with anybody. I think when I’m really solid from the baseline, as long as I’m serving and returning well, I feel like she’s always going to be there at the net to pick up, pick off the volleys at the net.
“I feel like our games just kind of mesh that way.”
Townsend and Pegula will hope their games ‘mesh’ again in the semis, should they be required to play doubles.
Who will Team USA play in the Billie Jean King Cup semifinals?
The Americans will now prepare to take on either Great Britain or Japan in the last four of the Billie Jean King Cup.
Lindsay Davenport, captain of Team USA, will be confident of leading her side to a win against either team, which both enter the competition without a top-50 singles player.
They may have a tougher time of things if they were to reach the final, however, with Ukraine or Italy awaiting them.
As the defending champions, Italy look like strong contenders to win the title, and Ukraine were excellent in their 2-0 quarterfinal win over Spain.
Only time will tell who will emerge victorious in Shenzhen, China, but you certainly won’t want to miss any of the action.
Ukraine will play Italy in the first semifinal on Friday, September 19, before Team USA plays Great Britain or Japan on Saturday, September 20.
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