Fed Cup: Lottner loses – decision made in doubles

The German Fed Cup team, which has been severely weakened by a lack of replacements, won the first-round match in Belarus 2-2. Debutante Antonia Lottner (Düsseldorf) lost her fourth singles match against Arina Sabalenka despite another strong performance 3:6,7:5,2:6. The duel with the last year’s finalist will be decided in the final doubles (live on DAZN and in the LIVETICKER).

The new team boss Jens Gerlach will send the experienced Anna-Lena Grönefeld and Tatjana Maria to the field. Belarus will compete with Arina Sabalenka and Lidsija Marosawa. In the event of a defeat, the German team will have to go into the relegation as in the previous year. If Grönefeld and Friedsam win the doubles, Germany won the semi-finals (21/22. April) against the Czech Republic.

Experienced Tatjana Maria had won 6-4,5-7,6-0 against Lapko on Sunday morning and secured the second point for the German team. In the absence of top ten players Angelique Kerber (Kiel) and Julia Görges (Bad Oldesloe), Lottner had a great chance to win the duel in Belarus.

But Sabalenka had big problems with Sabalenka’s powerful game. Although she fought her way into the decisive third set, Lottner won two breaks and couldn’t find her way back into the match. Maria also had to admit defeat to Sabalenka in the first singles on Saturday.

The German team had gone into the duel in Minsk as a clear outsider. The White Russians, who lost last year’s final against the USA in the final, will also not be in the best line-up. The two-time Australian Open winner and former world number one Viktoria Asarenka will not be there this weekend.