U.S. loses in Fed Cup final to Italy
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Reporting from San Diego — CoCo Vandeweghe’s tears told her story.
After Melanie Oudin started the schedule Sunday with a 6-3, 6-1 upset of the world’s seventh-ranked player, Francesca Schiavone, Fed Cup rookie Vandeweghe couldn’t keep the ball in the court often enough.
Vandeweghe’s 46 unforced errors were her undoing in a 6-1, 6-2 loss to Flavia Pennetta that gave Italy an insurmountable 3-1 lead in the best-of-five format and its second consecutive Fed Cup championship.
Vandeweghe cried on the court as she watched the Italians celebrate their title and she cried in the interview room. Her body shook as U.S. captain Mary Joe Fernandez held her arm and told her this was all OK.
It hadn’t felt that way to the 18-year-old Vandeweghe as she watched the Italians celebrate in front of an announced crowd of 3,245 at the San Diego Sports Arena.
“It’s emotional right now, losing for my country and for my teammates, people that kind of counted on me to pull out a win,” Vandeweghe said.
This was the second straight year the Italians beat the United States in the finals and both times the U.S. team was missing its two top-ranked players, Serena and Venus Williams.
If the Williams sisters want to be eligible for the 2012 Olympics, they must make themselves available for Fed Cup in 2011 and 2012.
The bright spot for the Americans this weekend was the play Sunday of Oudin, 19, who had been lacking in notable victories this season. She’d beaten only two players ranked in the top 100 since last spring so her domination of the 30-year-old Schiavone was a surprise.
“This is the best I’ve played in a long time,” Oudin said. “I felt confident out there. I played with no fear.”
Oudin was a Sunday substitution in the lineup for Bethanie Mattek-Sands. Mattek-Sands suffered cramps during her 7-6 (4), 6-2 loss to Pennetta on Saturday and Fernandez said Mattek-Sands also had a sinus infection so she decided to play the lower-ranked Oudin.
That decision paid off. Oudin was aggressive from the start of her match against Schiavone. She was hitting the lines and giving the crowd plenty of chances to shout, “USA, USA.”
Vandeweghe seemed to latch on to that momentum at first. She broke Pennetta in the opening game and then played a 20-point second game in which she finally surrendered the service break. It took 16 minutes to play those first two games and then only 64 minutes for the rest of the match.
“I’m very disappointed in myself,” Vandeweghe said. She also said she regretted giving away so many chances in that second game. “I was just on the losing end on the longer rallies. I’ve got to work at finishing out [service] games at love, not giving top players second chances.”
Vandeweghe seems to be a fast learner. She started the season ranked 322nd in the world and now is 114th and a Fed Cup veteran. And the tears must stop by Monday. She’s got another tournament to play.
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