World No. 2 Iga Swiatek led Poland to a comfortable victory over New Zealand with a 43-minute defeat of Elyse Tse in the 2025 Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge Play-Offs on Friday, while Turkiye upset Germany as Ayla Aksu and Zeynep Sonmez recovered from a set down to beat Anna-Lena Friedsam and Jule Niemeier in the decisive doubles match.
I’m really disappointed, but I fought until the end. Zeynep is a great player and was the most dominant player on the pitch today. I couldn’t really find my game even though I won the second set. She was very powerful in the third set and deserved it. She was the better player today. Eva Lys
Elsewhere, there were home wins for Argentina against Slovakia, Australia against Portugal and Mexico against Denmark, while the Czech Republic recorded an easy victory against Colombia in Varazdin, Croatia, and Slovenia recorded an impressive victory against the Netherlands in Bengaluru, India.
Swiatek’s latest 6-0 6-1 victory over Tse extends the Pole’s already impressive BJK Cup record to 13-2 in singles and 11 consecutive rubbers while representing her country.
The two defeats came when Swiatek was just 17 years old, with defeats against Russia’s Natalia Vikhlyantseva and Ukraine’s Dayana Yastremska in February 2019.
Swiatek had not represented the country in Billie Jean King Cup action to date, with her last appearance coming at the 2024 final in Malaga last autumn, where the Pole defeated Spain’s Paula Badosa in the Last 16, Czech Linda Noskova in the quarter-final and Italy’s Jasmine Paolini in the semi-final, but Poland narrowly lost to eventual champions Italy in the deciding doubles.
After a disappointing campaign at the WTA Finals last week, the 24-year-old is back in top form and on Friday evening Tse was simply unable to beat the six-time Grand Slam champion, which is hardly surprising considering the Kiwi is 907 places below Swiatek.
The gap in class and experience between the two was evident from the start, as Swiatek won 50 of the 64 points contested between the two in Gorzow, breaking her opponent five times, with Tse raising her arms in celebration after her only serve at 6-0, 3-0 down.
Swiatek’s victory added to a whitewash victory for her country, with Poland recording a 3-0 victory over New Zealand after Kataryzna Kawa had already defeated Vivian Yang 6-4 6-4 in the opening rubber, while Linda Klimovicova and Martyna Kubka completed the tie with a doubles win over Erin Routliffe and Jade Otway.
Friday’s win means Poland are set to clinch a place in the 2026 qualifiers provided they beat Romania on Sunday in their second Group B tie, facing New Zealand on Saturday.
Mathias Schulz – ITF
Elsewhere, Zeynep Sönmez was the star for Turkiye, who grabbed the lead in Group F with a 2-1 win over two-time champions Germany on the indoor hard court of Ismaning in Croatia.
With Tatjana Maria and Laura Siegemund withdrawn through injury, sixth seeds Germany fielded a depleted side in Ismaning, but that’s the hand Turkiye was dealt, and they played it brilliantly.
Sönmez won two tricky 3-setters, the first in the singles, as she upset Eva Lys 6-2 4-6 6-0, breaking the German’s serve eight times to secure a crucial point for Turkiye, and then claimed the decisive doubles match alongside Ayla Aksu, beating Anna-Lena Friedsam and Jule Niemeier 2-6 6-4 6-2, to take their country one step closer to be brought to a first BJK Berth for cup qualifications.
It was an important result in the stacked Group F, which also featured former champions Belgium, but a disappointment for Germany after Ella Seidel gave the hosts a promising start by winning the opening match against Berfu Cengiz 6-1 6-1, but the momentum changed when Lys, the German number 1, fell to her good friend Sönmez in three sets.
“I’m really disappointed, but I fought until the end,” Lys said later. “Zeynep is a great player and was the most dominant player on the court today. I couldn’t really find my game even though I won the second set. She was very powerful in the third set and deserved it. She was the better player today.”
“I’ve been playing on very slow surfaces in Asia for the last two months. I’ve felt very comfortable here in the last few days, but this is one of the fastest hard courts I’ve played on in the last few months. Normally I like that, but today I couldn’t quite find my timing in the match. I had to look for my rhythm all the time and I never really managed to get into it.”
With the score tied at 1-1, everything came down to the decisive doubles match, but Anna-Lena Friedsam and Jule Niemeier failed to score the final point, allowing Turkiye to seal a surprise victory on German soil.
Meanwhile, Slovenia avenged their 2024 Play-off defeat to the Netherlands as they defeated the Dutch team 2-1 in Bengaluru.
In a thrilling climax to the Group A opener, a Renata Zarazua-led Team Mexico won the hard-fought doubles match against Denmark to seal a 2-1 win, while the Czech Republic stormed to a 3-0 victory against Colombia in Group D to take the early advantage.
Maya Joint led Australia to a 3-0 win against Portugal, beating Francisca Jorge in two tight sets at the Domain Tennis Center in Hobart on Friday
© William West/AFP via Getty Images
Day 1 Results
Group A – Mexico defeated Denmark 2-1
Club Sonoma, Monterrey, Mexico
- Rebecca Munk Mortenes (DEN) d. Victoria Ice (MEX) 6-4 6-4
- Renata Zarazua (MEX) d. Johanne Christine Svendsen (DEN) 5-7 6-3 6-3
- Giuliana Olmos/Renata Zarazua (MEX) p. Johanne Christine Svendsen/Rebecca Munk Mortensen (DEN) 6-3 7-5
Group B – Poland defeated New Zealand 3-0
Arena Gorzow, Gorzow Wielkopolski, Poland (hard, indoor)
- Katarzyna Kawa (POL) d. Vivian Yang (NZL) 6-4 6-4
- I created Swiatek (POL)d. Elyse Tse (NZL) 6-0 6-1
- Linda Klimovicova/Martyna Kubka (POL) d. Jade Otway/Erin Routliffe (NZL) 6-2 6-2
Group C – Argentina defeated Slovakia 3-0
Córdoba Lawn Tennis Club, Cordoba, Argentina (clay, outdoor)
- Julia Riera (ARG) d. Viktoria Hruncakova (SVK) 6-2 6-1
- Solana Sierra (ARG) d. Rebecca Sramkova (SVK) 6-2 6-4
- Jazmin Ortenzi/Julia Riera (ARG) d. Katarina Kuzmova/Nina Vargova (SVK) 6-4 3-6 6-4
Group D – Czech Republic defeated Colombia 3-0
Arena Varazdin, Varazdin, Croatia (hard, indoor)
- Nikola Bartunkova (CZE) d. Yuliana Lizarazo (COL) 6-3 6-1
- Linda Noskova (CZE) d. Camila Osorio (COL) 6-2 6-2
- Lucie Havlickova/Dominika Salkova (CZE) d. Maria Paulina Perez-Garcia/Maria Torres Murcia (COL) 6-1 6-2
Group E – Australia defeated Portugal 3-0
Domain Tennis Centre, Hobart, Australia (hard, outdoor)
- Kimberly Birrell (AUS) d. Matilde Jorge (POR) 6-4 6-4
- Maya Joint (AUS) d. Francisca Jorge (POR) 7-5 7-5
- Storm Hunter/Ellen Perez (AUS) d. Francisca Jorge/Matilde Jorge (POR) 6-1 6-3
Group F – Turkiye defeated Germany 2-1
Tennis Club Ismaning, Ismaning, Germany (hard, indoor)
- Ella Seidel (DE) d. Berfu Cengiz (TUR) 6-1 6-1
- Zeynep Sonmez (TUR) d. Eva Lys (DU) 6-2 4-6 6-0
- Ayla Aksu/Zeynep Sonmez (TUR) d. Anna-Lena Friedsam/Jule Niemeier (DU) 2-6 6-4 6-2
Group G – Slovenia defeated the Netherlands 2-1
SM Krishna Tennis Stadium, Bengaluru, India (hard, outdoor)
- Tamara Zidansek (SLO) d. Arantxa Russia (NED) 6-1 7-6(6)
- Kaja Juvan (SLO) d. Suzan Lamens (NED) 7-6(5) 4-6 6-3
- Suzan Lamens/Demi Schuurs (NED) d. De Dalila Jakupovic/Nika Radisic (SLO) 6-4 6-0
Here’s an overview of all the results in the Play-off groups so far, and the remaining schedule:
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