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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Sport
Matt Majendie

Katie Boulter calls for rowdy crowd to get behind GB in must-win Billie Jean King Cup tie

Katie Boulter has called for a more rowdy crowd in Glasgow later today when Britain take on Spain in a must-win Billie Jean King Cup tie.

Anne Keothavong’s side were in danger of exiting the tournament after losing to Kazakhstan on Tuesday but have another shot against the Spanish in front of their home crowd.

Boulter has had a propensity to produce her best tennis in this format – her three-set loss earlier in the week to Yulia Putintseva was only her second in 11 rubbers in this format.

And the 26-year-old has called on those inside the Emirates Arena to get behind her and her British team-mates later this afternoon.

“I appreciate having anyone supporting me right now,” she said in the wake of the Kazakh loss. “It would be nice to see a little bit more rowdy crowd out there for sure.”

(Getty Images for LTA)

Ahead of the event, Boulter had talked about bringing some “Emma Raducanu magic” to the event in the absence of Britain’s leading player, who was ruled out by a wrist injury bringing a premature end to her season.

Raducanu’s absence has given the British No3 another chance to shine in the team tennis format, and Boulter knows Britain are very much the underdogs against Spain.

Should victory help them top their group, Boulter said: “It would be one of the biggest achievements. I feel I’ve had a few in the past in the Fed Cup and to add more to my memory would be pretty special.”

And she said she would harness her past successes in the competition to inspire her today. “Hopefully I will use it,” she said. “It’s something that is pretty special to me. I hope we can replicate something like that.”

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