Italy's Tathiana Garbin, Lucia Bronzetti, Jasmine Paolini, Camila Giorgi, Martina Trevisan, and Elisabetta Cocciaretto proudly display the trophy. — Reuters
Jasmine Paolini reflected on an 'unbelievable year' for both herself and Italian tennis, as she led her country to Billie Jean King Cup victory on Wednesday. The world number four had an exceptional season, reaching the finals at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, securing her second career title in Dubai, and then triumphing with Italy in doubles at the Olympics and again in Malaga. Paolini sealed Italy's 2-0 win over Slovakia by winning the second singles rubber against Rebecca Sramkova, following Lucia Bronzetti's victory over Viktoria Hruncakova in the opening match.
In the men's game, Italy's Jannik Sinner holds the world number one ranking and has won the Australian Open, US Open, and the ATP Finals recently. 'I think it's an unbelievable year for Italian tennis and it's so good for our sport in our country,' Paolini told reporters. 'We have a lot of fans of tennis in Italy now, tennis is growing a lot. It's really good to have Jannik as world number one, he's an example for everybody. It was an unbelievable year I have to say.'
Italy's BJK Cup final defeat last year seemed insurmountable at the time, but Paolini's success this season has been nothing short of extraordinary. 'This year was crazy, to finish it like that -- it's a dream,' said the 28-year-old. 'At the beginning of the week I didn't think we'd end the week with a trophy, it's always tough this competition, with big matches...'I'm glad that we were able to do it, it's not easy after last year we lost in the final... last year Canada played amazing tennis, this year we played amazing tennis -- we deserve it I think.'
Paolini and her teammates were presented with blue jackets by Billie Jean King herself during the trophy ceremony. 'We exchanged jackets, I give her mine and she gives me this one,' explained Italian captain Tathiana Garbin. 'It's an honour to talk to Billie, she's a legend... she's the one who changed the game. It's an honour to have her here, she changed the way women are treated, not just in sport but in all the situations.'
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