Canada has had an idea of their path to a second consecutive Billie Jean King Cup title for some time. But as the matches are underway in Malaga, Spain, the picture is becoming clearer.
The title defence will begin on Sunday against Great Britain, with a couple of historic powerhouses waiting in the wings.
With Canada’s first tie fast approaching, let’s learn more about the teams that are standing between them and another Billie Jean King Cup triumph.
Quarter-Final: Great Britain
- Date: Sunday, Nov. 17
- Head-to-Head: 0-3
- Last Meeting: 1984 World Group Play-Offs, Great Britain won 2-1
Canada will be looking to score their first-ever win against Great Britain in the opening tie of their title defence. Even though the Brits have won all the previous meetings between the two nations, the history is not particularly relevant as many of the players involved in the quarter-final clash were not even born the last time the two teams met.
On paper, the Brits have the advantage over Canada with three Top 100 singles players in their lineup. They are led by world No. 24 Katie Boulter, who will likely play Leylah Annie Fernandez in the second singles match. The pair have split their previous two meetings, although Boulter’s win was back in 2018 while Fernandez won their most-recent match up back in July 2023.
Read also: Team Canada Coming In Hot at Billie Jean King Cup
Boulter has had a big season, starting 2024 outside the Top 50 but shot up the rankings thanks to titles in San Diego and Nottingham. She will be arriving in Malaga in good form after reaching the final in her most recent tournament in Hong Kong.
Backing up Boulter are Emma Raducanu and Harriet Dart. Back in April’s qualifying round, Raducanu came up clutch for her country with a pair of singles wins to send Britain to Malaga. However, the 2021 US Open champion has struggled to stay healthy throughout the season and only played three tournaments, seven total matches, after Wimbledon.
Raducanu and Boulter swept aside Germany in their opening tie on Friday, each securing straight-set wins to set the quarter-final clash with Canada.
Read also: Fernandez, Dabrowski, Stakusic, Marino Back to Defend Billie Jean King Cup Title – Meet Team Canada
Of the potential matchups in the opening singles match, only Dart for the Brits and Rebecca Marino for Canada have previously met. Dart leads their head-to-head 2-1 although Marino won their most recent hard-court match last year in Dubai.
Rounding out the British roster are Heather Watson and Olivia Nicholls, who could both factor into the doubles. Nicholls is ranked 39th in doubles while Watson is No. 57.
Semifinal: Australia or Slovakia
Should Canada advance into the semifinals, they’ll face off against either Australia or Slovakia.
Australia
- Potential Date: Monday, Nov. 18 or Tuesday, Nov. 19
- Head-to-Head: 0-4
- Last Meeting: 1996 World Group II Play-Offs, Australia won 3-2
Like Canada, Australia had a bye directly into quarter-finals, where they will face Slovakia.
The Aussies are led by world No. 85 Ajla Tomljanovic, who has struggled to stay healthy ever since her strong 2022 campaign that saw her reach a pair of Grand Slam quarter-finals. However, Tomljanovic has been playing consistently in the latter half of 2024 and won a WTA 125 title in October, beating Marina Stakusic en route. The Aussie No. 1 won her lone previous match with her projected Canadian opponent, Fernandez, earlier this year on grass in Birmingham.
Only two members of the Australian team that beat Mexico 4-0 in qualifying are making the trip to Malaga, Daria Saville and Ellen Perez, the No. 13-ranked doubles player in the world.
Singles world No. 90 Olivia Gadecki and No. 115 Kimberly Birrell round out the Australian side.
Slovakia
- Potential Date: Monday, Nov. 18 or Tuesday, Nov. 19
- Head-to-Head:1-2
- Last Meeting: 2016 World Group II Play-Offs, Slovakia won 3-2
Slovakia caused the first big upset of the 2024 Finals on Thursday by taking out the powerhouse United States to set their quarter-final clash with Australia.
Even though the Americans were without their top three, they still boasted a significant rankings advantage over their Slovak opposition. However, world No. 43 Rebecca Sramkova upset No. 11 Danielle Collins before Tereza Mihalikova and Viktoria Hruncakova took the doubles to complete the upset. Interestingly, world No. 375 Renata Jamrichova played the opening singles match over the second-highest ranked Slovakian, No. 110 Anna Karolina Schmiedlova.
Sramkova has been red hot since the US Open, reaching three finals and winning a WTA 250 title in Thailand. She won at least four matches in four of her last five tournaments. A clash with Fernandez would be the first between them.
While Canada and Slovakia met in Billie Jean King Cup competition just eight years ago, Mihalikova is the only player on either team who was present at that tie.
Final: Czechia/Italy/Poland/Japan
Canada cannot have a rematch of any of their 2023 Finals ties until the final, as all four of their opponents from Seville are on the opposite side of the draw. If Canada reaches the final, they would meet one of the following four countries.
Czechia
Despite missing four of their top five players, the Czechs still are able to send a lineup that includes three Top 50 players. 19-year-old Linda Noskova is the top-ranked Czech and is joined by veterans Marie Bouzkova and Katerina Siniakova, who won two majors in doubles this year and just reached the final of the WTA Finals.
Italy
Italy is sending a very similar lineup to the one that reached the final a year ago in Seville, falling to the Canadians. However, the breakthrough of Jasmine Paolini in 2024 makes the squad look significantly more intimidating. The Italian No. 1 is the second-highest-ranked player participating in Malaga.
Poland
Canada may have caught a break last year when they faced an Iga Swiatek-less Poland, but the five-time major champion will be in Malaga this time. With Swiatek leading the way, the Polish roster looks rather intimidating as the only country in the competition with three Top 40 singles players on the team.
Japan
Japan are in the final eight of the Billie Jean King Cup for the first time in their history. Despite only having one Top 100 singles player, No. 56 Moyuka Uchijima, Japan was able to beat Romania in the opening tie of the Finals. With three Top 50 doubles players, Japan could be a real threat if they can get a tie to the decisive rubber.
CLICK HERE for everything you need to know about the 2024 Billie Jean King Cup Finals.
Viewers can watch Team Canada’s Billie Jean King Cup Finals and Davis Cup Final 8 ties for free on CBC Gem, cbcsports.ca, the CBC Sports app, and CBC Sports’ official YouTube channel. The ties will also be available in French, as TVA Sports and TVA Sports Direct will be showing Canada’s matchups, as well as all semifinals and finals.