Billie Jean King Cup, Elisabetta Cocciaretto remounted: Japan gets first point

Ena Shibahara beats Elisabetta Cocciaretto, Italy-Japan 0-1

The first point of the Billie Jean King Cup quarterfinal between Italy and Japan goes to the Japanese: in the challenge staged on the concrete of the Martin Carpena Arena in Malaga, Spain, Ena Shibahara in fact defeated Elisabetta Cocciaretto in a comeback, regaining a set disadvantage and reversing, in fact, the initial prediction.

Cocciaretto, number 54 in the world, started well against the Japanese, who occupies instead the position number 135 in the world rankings: the first set è however, less easy than expected and lasted a good 55 minutes, but in the end the Italian won by six games to three and seemed to put the match on a downhill slope.

In the second set, however, everything changes: Shibahara withstands blow after blow until 4 tied, before gaining the break in the ninth game: too late for a possible counter-attack, the fraction ends 6-4 and the third set becomes decisive for the awarding of the point in view of the next matches.

The third set also begins in the name of balance: this time the decisive break comes first and allows the Japanese athlete to fly up to 5-3, Cocciaretto saves two match points in the ninth game and one in the tenth, but è too little too late: after two hours and forty-eight minutes the match ends 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 in favor of Shibahara.

It is now up to Jasmine Paolini to rebalance the score: the Versilia tennis player, number 4 in the world, è committed against Moyuka Uchijima, number 56 WTA, and she also enjoys the favor of the odds but as demonstrated by the match of her national teammate the difference in ranking è relative in events of this kind.