April 19, 2014 - 4:01 PM
QUEBEC - Aleksandra Wozniak gave Canada a 1-0 lead over Slovakia in the Fed Cup World Group 1 playoff tie with a 4-6, 7-5, 7-5 win over Jana Cepelova on Saturday.
The Blainville, Que., native trailed 2-5 in the second set before she began playing more confidently off the ground, moving her opponent around the court and forcing errors from the young Slovak.
Cepelova, ranked almost 100 spots higher than Wozniak, twice served for the match in the second and third sets but couldn't finish off the win.
Montreal's Eugenie Bouchard, ranked 18th, faced 137th-ranked Kristina Kucova later Friday.
On Sunday, Wozniak was set to play Kucova, Bouchard takes on Cepelova and in the doubles competition Toronto's Sharon Fichman and Ottawa's Gabriela Dabrowski will play Janette Husarova and Cepelova.
Slovakia is playing without its best player, 10th-ranked Dominika Cibulkova.
The winner will advance to the World Group I for 2015 while the loser will compete in the World Group II. Canada and Slovakia have only met once in Fed Cup play, with the Slovaks winning 5-0 in Bratislava in 1997.
News from © The Canadian Press, 2014