Kamiji: 'I've changed my attitude towards the game since last year'
Within minutes of Japan making history by winning the women’s title at the 2022 BNP Paribas World Team Cup, Yui Kamiji made an observation that suggested that still better was to come from herself and her teammates. Such is the mindset of an elite athlete that there’s always something to improve upon rather than focus on past glories.
“I’m very happy and excited about my performance today, but of course Diede didn’t play. Our job is to continue working hard to get the title again,” Kamiji said a year ago this week, after Japan won the women’s title for the first time with a 2-0 victory over 32-time champions Netherlands
With world No.1 De Groot ruled out of last year’s final on medical grounds, the prospect of a clash between the world’s top two players in this year’s final is enticing, to say the least.
“We received many congratulatory messages; we were the last Japanese team to win a World Team Cup title, but I think we were able to play in a very good atmosphere during the tournament, on and off the court,” Kamiji added after Japan beat Great Britain 2-0 to secure their place in this year’s final. Netherlands also beat France 2-0 in the other semi-final on the fifth day of play at Vilamoura Tennis and Padel Academy.
Throughout 2022 Kamiji took De Groot to three sets only once in seven meetings, that three-set loss coming at the US Open. She has already taken De Groot to a deciding set in their first three meetings of 2023, winning the opening set each time, including a 6-0 first set in favour of Japan’s world No. 2 in the final of the Australian Open.
That is not to suggest that Saturday’s women’s final in Vilamoura will produce a similar performance, Or that the outcome could be a Kamiji victory. But the 29-year-old has certainly been putting in the work to try and buck the trend in the current head-to-head between the two players.
“I’m not unsatisfied for that (last year) but because I didn't win a Grand Slam in singles. But it was a very good moment to win the doubles with Dana (American Dana Mathewson) at Wimbledon,” said Kamiji.
“I’m training for a better performance than last year. I changed my attitude towards the game a little from last year's US Open. I also made some changes to my style of play; to play more aggressively. I was training with that style during the off-season.”
This year’s women’s final is, of course, far more than a potential meeting between Kamiji and De Groot. Kamiji’s teammate Momoko Ohtani beat Jiske Griffioen in the opening singles match in of last year’s title decider and the two players could be nominated by their captains to play each other again this year.
Meanwhile, France and Great Britain will go-head-to-head for the bronze medal, having both reached the last four from the same round-robin pool, with France looking to repeat their win over Great Britain earlier this week.
USA claim first medal as Netherlands prepare to face Israel
Andrew Bogdanov began his debut World Team Cup by partnering David Wagner to victory in USA’s decisive doubles match against Turkey on Monday. The 28 year-old went on to earn his first singles win for his country and he ends his debut at the ITF’s flagship wheelchair tennis team event as a bronze medallist after again partnering Wagner to victory in another deciding doubles encounter. However, this one was much closer than the first, with Bogdanov and Wagner edging out Japan’s Daisuke Ishito and Koji Sugeno 6-1 4-6 (10-6).
The 2023 World Team Cup quad title will be decided on Saturday as top seeds Netherlands face Israel, former four-time champions, with Sam Schroder and Niels Vink bidding to earn a third successive trophy for Netherlands.
Looking ahead to the final, world No.1 Vink, said: “Our level of this week is good and we are both feeling good. It is exciting to play Israel this year in the final because they are strong so it will be a good fight ”
Netherlands to play Great Britain in men’s final
While aiming to complete a third successive World Team Cup victory in the quad World Group, Netherlands will also bid to achieve the same in the men’s World Group.
Sunday’s final will see third seeds Netherlands face second seeds Great Britain after Maikel Scheffers and Ruben Spaargaren wrapped up a 2-1 Dutch victory over France in the semi-finals. Scheffers and Spaargaren beat Frederic Cattaneo and Stephane Houdet 6-2 6-3 to deny Cattaneo and Houdet as the French duo attempted to follow up their late-night deciding doubles victory over top seeds Japan in their crucial last round-robin pool contest.
Victory for Netherlands throws up the prospect of Sunday’s final featuring a singles clash between Spaargaren and Alfie Hewett, with world No. 6 Spaargaren the only player to have beaten world No. 1 Hewett in singles competition this year.
Hewett and Gordon Reid won both singles matches in Great Britain’s semi-final against 2021 and 2022 silver medallists Spain, but not before Hewett saw a healthy lead slip away in his second set tie-break against Martin de la Puente. However, ultimately, De la Puente was unable to force a third set and Hewett finally sealed a 6-4 7-6(8) win that now gives Great Britain the opportunity of playing for a third World Team Cup men’s title.
Great Britain to face USA in junior final
In 2021 Netherlands won all three senior World Team Cup titles in the same year for the first time. The only way of improving on that achievement is to complete a four-timer by adding the junior title.
However, attempting that feat will have to wait for another year after USA’s Charlie Cooper and Thomas Majetic beat Dutch duo Xavier Donker and Ivar van Rijt 6-2 6-3 in the deciding doubles match of their junior World Group semi-final.
While USA beat Netherlands 2-1, Ruben Harris and 2022 Cruyff Foundation Junior Masters boys’ singles runner-up and doubles champion Joshua Johns earned Great Britain a 2-0 win over Australia in the other semi-final.
After Great Britain lost the 2019 and 2022 finals to Australian teams it was a welcome victory and the Brits will now play USA in this year’s final on Sunday.