Malaga (dpa) – The German tennis women were eliminated in the round of 16 of the Billie Jean King Cup. The team of national coach Rainer Schüttler lost 0-2 against Great Britain in Malaga and thus clearly missed out on a surprise.
The defeat was already clear after the two singles. First, Jule Niemeier lost the opening game against Emma Raducanu 4:6, 4:6. After that, Laura Siegemund had no chance in the top duel against Katie Boulter at 1:6, 2:6. The double was therefore meaningless and was no longer played. An overall weak year in German women’s tennis ended with another disappointment.
Niemeier cannot take advantage of opportunities
Niemeier held up well against Raducanu. However, the 25-year-old from Dortmund was unable to take advantage of her chances in the first set. After the 2021 US Open winner managed to break 4-3, Niemeier had five break points herself immediately afterwards, but was unable to convert them. Raducanu took the first set after 49 minutes.
The Brit also managed an early break in the second round. Niemeier then took the serve from her opponent, but she lost her service again immediately afterwards. Raducanu was able to complete the victory after 1:55 hours with the sixth match point. “She simply served better than me in the tight and important moments,” said Niemeier.
Siegemund with far too many mistakes
The pressure on Siegemund was great. But the 36-year-old Swabian had no chance against Boulter. Although Siegemund managed a quick break, the world number 24 then dictated the game at will. Siegemund had great difficulty with her serve and did not complete a single service in the first set. In total, the German number one made 29 slight errors – far too many to have a chance of winning.
