True grit: Jessica Pegula and Emma Navarro come from a set down to set up Italy Billie Jean King Cup Final clash

A valiant effort from Great Britain who perhaps on another day would've found a way past Team USA and into an unexpected showdown with Italy but Jessica Pegula and Emma Navarro showed their class to reach the championship match at the Billie Jean King Cup Finals.

Navarro was up first as she took down Sonay Kartal albeit it was all on the racquet of the Brit to begin proceedings. She won through 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 to give the United States a 1-0 lead meaning victory for Jessica Pegula against Katie Boulter would settle proceedings.

It did albeit Pegula too wasn't exactly completing the job with ease. The United States albeit with a strong team most years have struggled in recent history in this tournament. They have reached now 31 finals in this event albeit they haven't done so since 2018. They could yet win a 19th Billie Jean King Cup title this weekend and a first since 2017. They have only won one since 2000.

Despite breaking serve to start, Navarro approached the wily Brit with much hesistency and Kartal took full advantage. Kartal breezed 4-1 up and amid the absence of Emma Raducanu took on the mantle for Great Britain as often the forgotten light amid the rise of Raducanu and Boulter.

But being the only Brit standing in the latter stages of Wimbledon earlier this year, she has shown time and again that she can't be written off. She won both matches on her Billie Jean King Cup debut in April and rose to a career high of World No.44 in July amid the fourth round run at SW19. She withstood a late Navarro surge to take the opening set 6-3.

Navarro took hold of the quick shifts in momentum as she took the serve back twice after being hit back at by Kartal and she managed to weather the storm. Otherwise it could've been a very different complexion of a tie. She sealed the second 6-4 which seemed to give her a freedom and nous to craft her way into form. Navarro was mesmerising in the final set managing to finally string it together and claimed it 6-3.

Pegula rises to the occasion

While Pegula herself had to return to the fore and find her best tennis. Katie Boulter in defeat played some of the best tennis she has in many a month. She broke for 3-2 at the fifth time of asking and made it 4-2 with a hold with no real dramas.

Boulter held for 5-3 and after Pegula netted two backhands, Boulter had her in the palm of her hand. She was borderline unplayable as she claimed the set 6-3. The errors continued to flow from the racquet of Pegula but that was the difference. Once she got them mopped up she was better for it. Boulter had break points but Pegula got out of jail. She broke herself for 2-1 albeit Boulter got three break points. Boulter broke back as Pegula tried to stem the tide. But double faults and skewed backhands saw the American break back and start her revival as she went on to lose the second 6-4 with four double faults in the second set telling the story.