GB in must-win territory at BJK Cup after Kartal loss

Great Britain will have to come from behind to reach the Billie Jean King Cup final after a battling Sonay Kartal fell to the United States' Emma Navarro to go 1-0 down.

Kartal, ranked more than 60 places below world number 18 Navarro, had looked on course for her third victory over a player ranked inside the top 20 this year after going a set and a break up.

But Navarro, who saved two set points against Kazakhstan's Yulia Putintseva in the quarter-finals, fought back to outlast Kartal 3-6 6-4 6-3 and give the US the lead.

The loss means Katie Boulter must beat world number seven Jessica Pegula to keep Britain in the best-of-three tie.

Should Boulter win, the tie would be decided by the doubles - and the United States have Taylor Townsend, the world's best doubles player, on their bench.

Britain, competing in the semi-finals for the third time in four years, are attempting to qualify for the final for the first time in 44 years.

They have never won the women's team competition, while their American opponents are 18-time champions.

Kartal had her serve broken in a nine-minute opening game but responded to those early nerves in clinical fashion, winning the next four games and converting all three of her break point opportunities to take the first set.

Navarro was her own worst enemy at times. She double-faulted to hand Kartal her first break, failed to win a point on her second serve and produced a glut of forehand errors.

But as poor as she was in the opening set, Kartal was excellent, dominating their baseline exchanges and utilising her athleticism and the full width of the court to construct winner after winner.

Her confidence was on full display when she chased down a drop shot before nailing a smashed winner to seal the set in style with a hold to love.

Kartal broke immediately at the start of the second set and again in the fifth game, but on both occasions, Navarro responded immediately.

An increasingly error-prone Kartal then handed Navarro three set points - the second of which she took to level the match.

Momentum continued to swing in the final set, with the resilient Navarro saving two break points in the opening game and breaks exchanged midway through the decider.

However, when the American won eight consecutive points to take a 5-2 lead, the battling Kartal was unable to mastermind a comeback of her own, with US captain Lindsay Davenport finally cracking a smile as Navarro converted her second match point.