Sure, maybe the U.S was expected to win this tie, but with the team they fielded I was doubtful. But hello, Melanie Oudin. The Georgia teen was waxed by Gisela yesterday and looked like she was going to get waxed by Jozami today, dropping the first set 62. But the kid's competitive and she buckled down, even overcoming a rain delay when she was up 4-0 in the second, to come back and beat Jozami, 61 62 in the next two sets to keep the U.S. alive going into the doubles...
...which the U.S won easily behind #1 doublist (?) Liezel Huber. So congrats to the U.S., who move on to the World Group semis to play a surprise semifinalist...
The Czech Republic. What? Yes, the Czech Republic, who pulled off quite the upset beating last year's finalist, Spain. Petra Kvitova was the real hero of the tie, winning her two singles matches. You guys know that I'm always scared of Kvitova and it's nice/scary to see her playing well. Lucie also played a big role, coming in today to beat CSN. I'm always happy when Lucie wins.
The other upset of the day? How about Italy not just beating France, but blasting them 5-0 for the win? Flavs should get obscene more often. After coming back to beat Momo yesterday, she came out to easily dispatch of a world weary Cone, 2 and 2. They'll face Russia.
