SEVILLE, Spain: Danielle Collins gave the United States a 1-0 lead over the Czech Republic in the Billie Jean King Cup Finals by beating Katerina Siniakova 6-3, 6-2 on Friday.
The winner will advance to play Canada in the semifinals on Saturday.
Collins broke her opponent three times, with Siniakova double-faulting five times on the indoor hard court in Seville.
Sofia Kenin can clinch the win for the U.S. if she beats Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova in the second singles match. These are the the two most successful teams in the competition’s history — the U.S. has the most titles with 18 and the Czechs the second most with 11.
The Czechs have won their last two meetings with the Americans.
The U.S. beat defending champion Switzerland in their group-phase opener on Thursday.
The Americans are without their two highest-ranked players. No. 3 Coco Gauff and No. 5 Jessica Pegula both played in the WTA finals in Mexico, which finished just before the Billie Jean King Cup Finals.
The winners of the four groups advance to the semifinals.
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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed - Associated Press)