Notable quotes from the two Fed Cup World Group semifinals and four World Group playoffs on Saturday (courtesy ofFedCup.com):
From Belgium captain Sabine Appelmans, after Yanina Wickmayer leveled Belgium’s semifinal with the Czech Republic, at home, with a 6-4, 6-4 win over Barbora Zahlavova Strycova: "Fed Cup seems to motivate her so much and she handles it so well," Appelmans said. "It gives her extra motivation to be on a team."
Petra Kvitova had put the Czechs in front with a 6-2, 7-6 (4) win over Kirsten Flipkens. Belgium is playing without top player Kim Clijsters.
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From U.S. captain Mary Joe Fernandez, after her team falls behind Germany 2-0, on clay in Stuttgart, with losses by Christina McHale to Andrea Petkovic, and Melanie Oudin to Julia Goerges: "The message for tomorrow is try to be better than they were today, keep trying to work on doing the right things on the court and controlling what you can,” Fernandez said. “Russia was able to do it against France [earlier this year], so coming back from 0-2 has been done before. Melanie will start us off [against Petkovic] and try to get us on the board."
The U.S. has never fallen out of the World Group.
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From 19-year-old Serbian Bojana Jovanovski, who was picked over eighth-ranked Jelena Jankovic but fell to Slovakia's Dominika Cibulkova, 4-6, 6-3, 6-1: “She can read the match better than me. I’m a younger player with not as much experience and I played some stupid things.”
From Cibulkova: "In the third set I was just flying on court."
From Serbia’s Ana Ivanovic, who bested Daniela Hantuchova, 6-2 6-4: "I was really nervous before going on court. But it’s good because it makes you push the limits and makes you more aware of certain things—sharper in a way—so I tried to make it work for me instead of against me and I managed to make it happen today. It was definitely one of my best performances in Fed Cup."
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From France’s Aravane Rezai, who took out Spain’s Anabel Medina Garrigues, 7-5, 6-7 (4), 6-2, to even the tie at 1-1: "I’m proud of myself—it was a tough match with a lot of fight. For me it was very important for me to win that match, personally and professionally."
Rezai has been in a deeo slump since a controversy involving her family at the Australian Open arose.
—Matthew Cronin