Czechia have been part of history after winning the Billie Jean King (BJK) Cup.
After beating Ukraine in the final, Czechia won the BJK Cup for the 12th time, only bettered by the USA’s 18 titles.
The stars of the Czechia team at the BJK Cup Finals were the Wimbledon champion and finalist, Linda Noskova and Karolina Muchova, with 13-time Grand Slam doubles champion Katerina Siniakova not even required for any of the ties as a result of their dominance.
While Noskova and Muchova will take home most of the praise, Czechia captain Barbora Strycova has made history of her own after winning the BJK Cup.
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Barbora Strycova matches Chris Evert and Billie Jean King after leading Czechia to BJK Cup win
Strycova is a former top 20 singles player and two-time Wimbledon doubles champion, having officially retired from tennis in 2023.
Nearly three years after retiring from tennis, Strycova became Czechia’s BJK Cup captain, taking over from Petr Pala, who stepped down after 18 years in this role. Pala won six titles during his reign as captain, all of which when Strycova was a playing member of the team.
Strycova has now become just the fourth woman in history who has won both the BJK Cup as both a player and captain, joining Chris Evert, Margaret Court and the person the event has been named after since 2020, Billie Jean King.
This was something Strycova was asked about in her post-match press conference after winning the BJK Cup title, as she admitted she had ‘goosebumps’ hearing herself next to their names.
“It says so much to be next to such legends,” said Strycova. “I didn’t know that before. They told me before the match. I had goosebumps to hear just the names.
“To lift the trophy as a player and as a captain means so much to me. Yeah, I am very honoured to be in this group of names.”
Strycova and Czechia continue to make history in the BJK Cup, and they will bid for a 13th title next year when the Qualifier ties take place all over again.
