Fed Cup: Kristina Mladenovic keeps France in the match against the USA

Kristina Mladenovic kept the French Fed Cup team in the semi-final duel with defending champion USA. In Aix-en-Provence, the-20th World Ranking defeated US Open semi-finalist Coco Vandeweghe in 1:48 hours with 1:6, 6:3, 6:2 and equalised for the hosts 1:1 after the first day.

Previously, Sloane Stephens won 7-6 (7-3), 7-5 against the French number two Pauline Parmentier on the clay court in the Arena Du Pays D’Aix New York. Captain Kathy Rinaldi’s US team won their 18th title in Minsk last November with a 3-2 draw with hosts Belarus and is by far the record winner of the most important women’s tennis team competition.

Mladenovic, friend of world number seven Dominic Thiem (Austria), caught up with Vandeweghe (WTA No. 16) after a weak start and turned the match in favour of the Equipe Tricolore with the help of the loud fans, as usual. After the match, team boss Yannick Noah happily took his protégé in his arms.

The French women had won the Fed Cup in 1997 and 2003. The last time they had reached the final was in 2016, but they lost out to the Czech Republic. Karolina Pliskova’s team leads in the other semi-final in the Porsche Arena in Stuttgart against Germany after the first two singles 2-0.

Stephens, number nine in the WTA ranking, was 2-5 behind the world rankings-122nd Parmentier in the first set, but fought back in an impressive manner and won another match for her national team for the first time in two years. “This was a battle. She played really well. And lying back is never fun. But I played better in the tie-break, which gave me confidence,” said Stephens.

On Sunday, Stephens and Mladenovic will face each other first, a decision could then be made in comparison between Parmentier and Vandeweghe. Mladenovic/Amandine Hesse and Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Madison Keys were nominated for the doubles draw on Friday.