Great Britain captain Anne Keothavong is not daunted by the prospect of taking on 18-time winners the United States in the semi-finals of the Billie Jean King Cup.
Britain breezed through a quarter-final tie against Japan without dropping a set on Thursday, as Sonay Kartal and Katie Boulter won their singles matches against Ena Shibahara and Moyuka Uchijima respectively.
USA had taken to the court in Shenzhen earlier the same day and claimed a hard-fought victory over Kazakhstan in a deciding doubles clash.
American players Jessica Pegula, Emma Navarro, Hailey Baptiste and McCartney Kessler are all ranked higher in singles than any of the British team while Taylor Townsend is the WTA’s number one doubles player.
But Keothavong, whose selection options also include Fran Jones and Jodie Burrage, is confident her team can compete.
“Yes, they’ve got options. We’ve got options too,” Keothavong said.
“They’re a strong team, but we’re also a strong team. We’re a united team.
“Was I watching them earlier? Absolutely. Pretty much most of the team were watching. We had it on in the background and we were following the match.
BACK IN THE @BJKCup SEMI-FINALS ❤️🔥
— LTA (@the_LTA) September 18, 2025
The Lexus GB Billie Jean King Cup Team advance with a 2-0 victory over Japan in Shenzhen#BackTheBrits 🇬🇧 | #BJKCup pic.twitter.com/linahhFevC
“Certainly the first match was really tight. That tie could have gone the other way.”
The USA have lifted the Billie Jean King Cup a record 18 times, whereas Great Britain have the unfortunate record of reaching the most finals without ever enjoying success.
However, the last of those four final appearances was back in 1981 and Keothavong, who has led the team to a third semi-final in four years, is determined to end the drought.
Keothavong continued: “It’s going to be tough, whoever they put out. But it’s another opportunity for us. Semi-finals again.
“We’ve shown how consistent we’ve been in recent years in this competition and we’re here for more. We’re just going to go after it.
For the first time in 33 years, we’re getting some USA v Great Britain action 🇺🇸🇬🇧#BJKCup | September 20 pic.twitter.com/VWLFMBEp1j
— Billie Jean King Cup (@BJKCup) September 18, 2025
“I think there’s always going to be unfinished business in this competition for us – certainly I feel that as captain – until we one day lift the trophy.”
The American team are captained by Lindsay Davenport, who said after their defeat of Kazakhstan: “We didn’t come here just to get to the semis.
“This is the first step in what we knew was going to be a tough week.
“We’re excited to get back out there on Saturday.”
World Athletics Championships live: Hodgkinson and Lyles star, Hunt wins 200m silver
Amy Hunt wins 200m silver at World Championships in Tokyo
Katie Boulter and Sonay Kartal star to set up Great Britain clash with USA
Emma Raducanu suffers agonising defeat to Barbora Krejcikova at Korea Open
How king of Wimbledon Bjorn Borg descended into a secret life of drugs and alcohol
Billie Jean King Cup Finals schedule, teams and how to watch on TV
