BRITS SERVE UP A CUP FAIRYTALE IN GLASGOW

A joyous spirit has fuelled the latest British tennis fairytale and Anne Keothavong’s side now have a place in the Billie Jean King Cup final in their sights.

Having gone into the event as the lowestranked side after being given a wild card place in Glasgow as hosts, Britain’s chances appeared minimal at best as they faced having to beat five-time champions Spain 3-0 on Thursday to reach the last four.

But Heather Watson and Harriet Dart both overcame big ranking gaps with brilliant performances – the latter beating 13thranked Paula Badosa for one of her best career victories – before Alicia Barnett and Olivia Nicholls claimed their second doubles win on their debut in the competition to set up a semi-final against Australia this morning.

Captain Keothavong said: “It’s down to their doubles win on Tuesday night (in a 2-1 loss to Kazakhstan) that kept us in this competition. I think if you watch that match, it’s hard not to feel the joy and the camaraderie between the players. It really truly was infectious.

“I think also Liv and Liss bring something different to the team. It’s not just the fact that they specialise in doubles but they have had a life outside of tennis.”

The last time Britain reached the semi-finals of the competition formerly known as Fed Cup was back in 1981, when Sue Barker and Virginia Wade secured victory over Australia before losing to the USA in the final.

The LTA hopes for a sizeable crowd while the semi-final will be shown live on BBC2.

● Victories for Belinda Bencic and Viktorija Golubic propelled Switzerland past Canada and into the semi-finals.