{"id":299036,"date":"2023-11-12T00:54:37","date_gmt":"2023-11-12T00:54:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportstons.com\/?p=299036"},"modified":"2023-11-12T00:54:37","modified_gmt":"2023-11-12T00:54:37","slug":"great-britain-suffer-shock-early-bjk-cup-setback-as-jodie-burrage-loses-opener","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportstons.com\/tennis\/great-britain-suffer-shock-early-bjk-cup-setback-as-jodie-burrage-loses-opener\/","title":{"rendered":"Great Britain suffer shock early BJK Cup setback as Jodie Burrage loses opener"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/p>\n
Jodie Burrage suffered a nightmare Billie Jean King Cup debut as hot favourites Great Britain fell behind against Sweden at London\u2019s Copper Box.<\/p>\n
The visitors were without their top two players through injury, leaving 372nd-ranked Kajsa Rinaldo Persson as their number one, but she overcame a rankings gap of nearly 300 places to defeat Burrage 6-4 6-1 in the opening rubber of the play-off tie.<\/p>\n
Burrage had led 4-0 in the first set but from there completely collapsed, losing eight games in a row and 12 of the next 13 as Sweden took a 1-0 lead.<\/p>\n
Burrage was unhappy to miss out on selection for the last two teams and had more than justified her debut with a strong season, breaking into the top 100 for the first time and establishing herself as the clear British number two behind Katie Boulter.<\/p>\n
She could not have asked for a better start, saving break points in the opening game and then breaking serve twice in a row.<\/p>\n
But Burrage\u2019s confidence proved fragile and the occasion began to overwhelm her as Persson worked her way calmly back into the set.<\/p>\n
Routine shots from the 24-year-old were flying yards long and her unforced error count hit 23 as a sixth game in a row went the way of Persson.<\/p>\n
The capacity crowd of 5,500 tried to lift her in the second set and she finally stopped the run of games against her to make it 1-2, but she could not mount a comeback, with Persson now playing well above her lowly ranking.<\/p>\n