The Czech Fed Cup by BNP Paribas team exerted its dominance on the competition after defeating Russia 3-2 in an enthralling encounter at the O2 Arena in Prague.
The hosts had to come back from 2-1 down on the final day in front of a sell-out home crowd after Russia's Maria Sharapova showed why she is on the best players in the world with a stunning performance against Petra Kvitova.
Down a set, Sharapova struck blistering groundstrokes to force her way back into the match, eventually running out a 36 64 62 winner.
“It’s never over for me until I play the last point," said the world No. 4 after the match.
"I don’t care who I’m playing against. The team supported me so well today.
"This is one of the few competitions where you’re not just playing for yourself and I really felt like I would look over to them and every time they were standing up.
That’s the meaning of this event.”
And Sharapova was effusive in her praise for the experience of playing in her first-ever Fed Cup Final, adding: “There’s no better feeling than being out on the court and having so many people flying here from Russia to support you and your team mates on the side.
"It’s an incredible achievement for me as I’ve never been in a Fed Cup Final and I won two of my matches and it’s one of those things where you look back and you’ve missed a lot of time on the court and these matches are just one big bonus for me at this point.”
Knowing she had to win to keep her country's hopes of a comeback alive, out stepped Karolina Pliskova against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the second singles rubber and she showed she was ice cool under pressure.
The tall Czech used her powerful serve and strong play off the ground to fend off her savvy opponent 63 64 before teaming up with Barbora Strycova in the decisive doubles.
This fabulous final would not have been the same if it didn't have one more twist in it and after the Czech duo dropped the first set against Pavlyuchenkova and Elena Vesnina it looked like the Russians might claim revenge for losing in the same fashion in 2011.
TOURNAMENT INFO
TIER: 125K
PRIZE MONEY: $115,000
SURFACE: Carpet
DIRECTOR: Philip Liu
Chinese Taipei is not a traditional tennis heartland, but it is fast becoming a force to be reckoned with. And now it has its first WTA-sanctioned tournament, the OEC Taipei WTA Challenger, which is staged on the indoor hardcourts of the capital's Taipei Arena.
The tournament, an ITF stop between 2008 and 2011 before being upgraded, was the first of the new WTA 125K Series events that launched in the fall of 2012.
WTA 125K Series events sit between the WTA's International Series and ITF tournaments.
Caroline Garcia, one of the leading WTA Rising Stars at the moment, came through at the Engie Open de Limoges in Limoges, France.
A No.3-seeded wildcard into the event, she survived a pair of tough three-setters earlier on in the week before outdoing unseeded American Louisa Chirico in the final, 6-1, 6-3.
"I'm really happy with this victory," Garcia said afterwards. "I had some difficult moments today, but it was an incredible final and the fan support was amazing. It's never easy playing a final.
"It's been an incredible week for me. I've lived through a lot of emotions here."
And just how special is it to win a title in her home country?
"It's actually a relief to win here in France, and at a tournament I really appreciate. I'm really happy to finish with the title here."
Garcia's biggest title came at the WTA International-level event in Bogotá, Colombia in 2014.
Czech Republic Selfie. 2015 Fed Cup Final
It was the result that everyone had been expecting but it wasn't plain sailing for the Czech Republic and Russia on the opening day of the 2015 Fed Cup by BNP Paribas Final in Prague.
In front of a sell-out crowd at the O2 Arena, Czech No. 1 Petra Kvitova got off to a slow start and had to come back from a set down to defeat Russia's Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 26 61 61.
“It was nerves," explained Kvitova after the match.
"It was really difficult for me to turn it round. When I stepped on the court I was so nervous, I was really tight. My legs were very heavy and I couldn’t move well so that was probably the key.”
Pavlyuchenkova would not have expected to defeat the world No. 6 but pushing her into a third set could help her team mate, Maria Sharapova, win the crucial battle of the No. 1s on Sunday.
“One day you win, one day you lose," said Pavlyuchenkova.
"One day you’re lucky, today I was not that lucky. I need to forget this match now and go and get ready for tomorrow.”
Sharapova was also made to work hard in her first-ever meeting against Karolina Pliskova in the second singles rubber on Saturday.
The Russian was broken on two occasions - not helped by serving a whopping nine double faults - but she finally managed to close out the victory 63 64 in one hour 29 minutes.
With the tie all square, the clash between Kvitova and Sharapova could prove pivotal and it's one that the crowd will be eager to see when play starts at 11am GMT on Sunday.
Even the Russian No. 1 pointed to the fact that it will be a showstopping clash.
“Last match of the season, you have to give everything you have," Sharapova. "I know both of us will and that’s the type of match you want to see in the Fed Cup Final.”
She added that she has an interesting way of dealing with the overwhelming Czech support: “It’s an incredible atmosphere. You see a lot more Czech flags than Russians but in my mind I see red, white and blue and I turn it in my mind as the Russian flags!”
Sharapova and Kvitova have met 10 times throughout their career with the Russian leading 6-4, but it was Kvitova who won their last two encounters - both of which came at the WTA Finals in Singapore.
Daniela Hantuchova official.
Missing summer already ☀️
#monaco #homesweethome❤️
Caroline Wozniacki: So happy to get Denmark's new Adidas jersey and support the boys for their 2 crucial euro qualifying matches. I Will be Watching! Go Denmark!
#altfortrøjen @adidasdanmark @landsholdet
Caroline Wozniacki: One of my favorite things about NYC...
You never know who you’ll run into!
Can u think of a better way to relax after a day of hard work?
#golf atnight #peaceinmind #nicecompany #friends whats your favourite activity after work? #stayactive #healthymeanshappy #balanced
Maria Sharapova: History lessons in #Prague
Maria Sharapova: Raw and simple. Black and white.
#Nike #TechPack #Sportswear
Caroline Wozniacki: Thank you @dubai_duty_free for an amazing night!
@katyperry performance was amazing!
#galadinner @anaivanovic
Ana Ivanovic Tonight's affair: #DubaiAirShow in partnership with @dubai_duty_free.
Wearing @marchesafashion & @casadeiofficial
Caroline Wozniacki: Thank you @dubai_duty free for a great start to my vacation!
#Dubai #timeoff
Maria Sharapova: Testing out my new @Nike X Sacai piece along with the swans.
#Series
Maria Sharapova Arrivals...
TOURNAMENT INFO
TIER: 125K
PRIZE MONEY: $115,000
SURFACE: Hard
DIRECTOR: Pascal Biojout
The inaugural Open GDF SUEZ de Limoges, a WTA 125K Series event, came on the heels of the conclusion of the WTA's 2014 season.
The tournament is held on indoor hardcourts at the Palais des Sports de Beaublanc, home to the Limoges CSP basketball team.
With total prize money of $125,000 and 160 ranking points awarded to the champion, WTA 125K Series events are a level above top-tier ITF Women's Circuit tournaments.
Limoges is a city and commune, the capital of the Haute-Vienne department and the administrative capital of the Limousin région in west-central France.
The final was a hard-fought, hard-hitting affair, with Williams coming out sharper - she raced out to an early 4-1 lead - but Pliskova closing in to 4-all before Williams snuck out the opening set, 7-5.
The second set script was flipped. This time it was Pliskova who had the leads, going up 4-2 and, after Williams got the set back on serve, going up 4-2 in the ensuing tie-break.
The Czech even brought up a set point at 6-5 in the breaker, ripping an inside out forehand that barely missed the sideline.
But like she's done so many times on the biggest stages all around the world, the No.1-seeded Williams lifted her game one last time to finally close out the No.3-seeded Pliskova, rifling back-to-back forehand winners - including a huge passing shot on match point - to finish her off, 7-5, 7-6(6).
"Seven weeks here in Asia and now I feel like it's my home!
" Williams said afterwards. "I'm so excited to win the first trophy in Zhuhai. All the players felt so welcome here and we appreciated all of the enthusiasm.
To see every seat filled for every match, that's all the players and tournament hope for.
"Also congratulations to Karolina. She deserved to win too - I was really lucky to win at the end."
Maria sharapova: The places you find in the world. #special
Pliskova broke four times to romp home, 6-3, 6-1.
Pliskova set the tone on the opening point, confidently guiding a tricky volley into the open court for a winner. Three points later, she was displaying the other side of her game, thumping a backhand down the line to secure an immediate break.
With the Czech's own delivery imperious - winning 92% of first serve points - she had no problems keeping Svitolina at arm's length, before striking once again in the final game of the set.
The second was even more one-sided. Once again Pliskova surged in front almost immediately, breaking for a 3-1 lead after outmaneuvering her increasingly flustered opponent. A quarter of an hour later she arrived at match point, conjuring up another delightful touch at the net to secure her place in the final.
Williams unleashed big serves and groundstrokes into the corners time and time again to completely overpower the No.4-seeded Vinci, breaking serve six times - including in the final game - en route to a 6-2, 6-2 victory.
"Wow, first final here - I'm very honored to be in the first final in Zhuhai!"
Williams said in her on-court interview after the match. "Today wasn't an easy match - every game was really well-contested and she never gave me any points. She's had a great year; I felt like I really earned the win today."
