Harriet Dart keeps GB hopes alive after Emma Raducanu fights blister in defeat

Emma Raducanu struggled with a blister in a one-sided loss to Marketa Vondrousova but Harriet Dart rode to Great Britain’s rescue to set up a deciding doubles rubber in their Billie Jean King Cup clash with the Czech Republic in Prague.

Raducanu marked her debut in the competition on Friday by beating Tereza Martincova in her first professional match on clay but lost 6-1 6-1 to former French Open finalist Vondrousova in only 62 minutes.

That put the Czechs within sight of victory in the play-off but captain Petr Pala’s decision to throw 16-year-old rookie Linda Fruhvirtova backfired when she was beaten 6-0 5-7 6-2 by Dart.

Fruhvirtova is a huge talent who recently reached the fourth round in Miami but, with three top-80 players sat in the stands, this was a very bold call.

Dart looked to be cruising to victory at 6-0 5-2 up and held two match points in the next game but she wobbled badly before rallying in the decider to claim her first singles win in the competition.

The thermometer read just six degrees on Saturday morning, extremely cold for an outdoor tennis match, and it became clear when Raducanu took a medical timeout at the end of the first set that she was struggling with a blister on her right foot.

She barely moved for several balls in the second set, wincing and limping her way to the finish line.

Raducanu said of the blister: “It kind of showed up after yesterday’s match. We’ve been managing it but as you saw I couldn’t really move or load either way and now it’s just about trying to get it better as soon as possible.

“It was compromising every shot I had to play. It’s very disappointing when you’re out there playing a rubber for your country and you feel completely redundant.”

Raducanu’s win over Martincova