Billie Jean King Cup: Katie Boulter leads top-four ranked players for Britain’s crucial Sweden play-off

Katie Boulter leads Britain’s Billie Jean King Cup team who will take on Sweden at the Copper Box in London on November 11-12.

The 27-year-old has established herself as Britain’s number one this season in the absence of injured Emma Raducanu and is currently ranked 52nd.

Jodie Burrage is the only other top 100 player available for captain Anne Keothavong’s side and she could make her debut in the competition after being overlooked in April’s defeat to France in Coventry.

Harriet Dart and Heather Watson, who were both key players in Great Britain’s run to the semi-finals of the competition in Glasgow last November but have fallen down the rankings this season, make up the quartet.

Doubles pair Alicia Barnett and Olivia Nicholls, who won three of their four matches representing Great Britain, were excluded this time.

Great Britain must beat the Swedes to remain top of the competition and give themselves another chance of reaching the final next year.

Keothavong said: “I am delighted that all of our top-ranked players have made themselves available for the Billie Jean King Cup match against Sweden next month.

“We are very excited to have another opportunity to play in front of our home crowd, especially at the Copper Box Arena, where the fans played such an important role in helping us cross the finish line in our last game there a few years ago.

“Finally, being able to lead this team is always a huge privilege and bringing live tennis back to where I grew up means a lot to me on a personal level.”

Great Britain beat Kazakhstan at the Copper Box in 2019 to finally exit the Europe/Africa zone, but the victory came at a cost to Boulter, who suffered a stress fracture in her back that ruled her out for six month.