Russia has won the Federation Cup, which is regarded as the unofficial world championship of women's tennis. In the final Russia beat the defending champions, Italy, to regain the trophy at home in Moscow.
Russia has now won the Fed Cup for three of the last four years. There last victory was in 2005. Their latest victory was confirmed when Svetlana Kuznetsova prevailed in a titanic three-set battle against Francesca Schiavone to give Russia an unassailable 3-0 lead.The world number two was far from her best and dropped the first set 6-4. Schiavone then had chances to win in straight sets, but Kuznetsova eventually hit back to take the second on a tie-break and send the match into a decider. The third saw numerous breaks of serve, but it was Kuznetsova who eventually came out on top to take it 7-5, sealing a three-set win and taking the Fed Cup for Russia. “I think it is very important to be a team. And today it was not only my victory, although I’ve brought two points. The girls gave me unbelievable support. And in many moments, when I was down, I still got this support,” Svetlana Kuznetsova said after the match.