France claim Fed Cup glory

France have won the Fed Cup for the third time after wrapping up a 3-2 victory over Australia in Perth on Sunday. The two teams were level at 1-1 heading into Sunday’s action, but France were able get their noses in front, as Kristina Mladenovic’s came from a set down to beat world number one Ashleigh Barty 6-2 4-6 6-7. Ajla Tomljanovic quickly levelled things up for the hosts in the second singles match of the day, as she overcame Pauline Parmentier 6-4 7-5, which meant it all came down to the final doubles rubber. It was France that ultimately prevailed during the doubles, with Mladenovic and Caroline Garcia seeing off Barty and Samantha Stosur to wrap up France’s third Fed Cup success and first since 2003. Winning coach Julien Benneteau was certainly pleased with his team’s heroics and he believes they are fully deserving of their title. “I’m the proudest man on the planet. I am going to have a lot of beers,” Benneteau said. “I’m so proud of my girls and my team. They deserve it because they fought for a long time for this title.” For Australia, their Fed Cup hoodoo goes on, as they have now lost their previous nine finals in the competition, with the last of their seven titles coming way back in 1974.