Britain on Verge of Billie Jean King Cup Win as Stojsavljevic Stuns Australia

Mika Stojsavljevic, ranked 275th in the world, and Harriet Dart have propelled a depleted Great Britain to the threshold of a spot in the Billie Jean King Cup Finals, overcoming Australia in Melbourne. In her debut, Stojsavljevic, 17, defeated world No 65 Talia Gibson 7-6 (7-4) 7-5, defying a 219-place difference in the WTA rankings. The 2024 US Open junior champion handed Great Britain an ideal start in the qualifiers, compensating for the absence of key players Emma Raducanu, Sonay Kartal, Katie Boulter, and Fran Jones. Stojsavljevic took an early 3-1 lead but needed a tie-break to secure the opening set, then navigated a turbulent second set with five breaks of serve. Following her win, Stojsavljevic expressed her amazement, citing the support from her team as pivotal. Harriet Dart later battled to defeat Kiimberly Birrell 4-6 6-3 6-3, positioning Britain to require just one more win from the remaining three matches to qualify for the finals in Shenzhen, China, scheduled from September 22-27. Dart reflected on her win, acknowledging the challenging match but expressing her happiness at contributing to the team's success. The doubles rubber on Saturday will see Dart team up with Jodie Burrage against Storm Hunter and Ellen Perez, aiming to complete the tie for Britain.