Benneteau after France's victory over Sweden in BJK Cup: "It's good to have come through like this"

France did not miss their first match in Group I, the equivalent of the second division of the Billie Jean King Cup, against Sweden. In Vilnius, Lithuania, the players of captain Julien Benneteau, heavily favored in their matchup against Sweden, delivered, winning 3-0.

Facing opponents ranked outside the top 500 in the world, Clara Burel and Varvara Gracheva secured victory for the French team after the singles matches, defeating Nellie Taraba Wallberg (6-2, 7-5) and Lisa Zaar (6-2, 6-3), respectively.

Later, the doubles pairing of Diane Parry and Alizé Cornet wrapped up the encounter against the Scandinavian nation with a decisive win, triumphing 6-2, 4-6, 13-11 against Linea Bajraliu and Lisa Zaar. After the match, Benneteau expressed satisfaction, though he acknowledged that a much tougher challenge awaits on Wednesday against Turkey.

"We’re obviously happy with this 3-0 win. We know we’ll have a tougher match on paper tomorrow against Turkey, so it’s good to start like this. I thought Clara (Burel) and Varvara (Gracheva) were very focused and sharp in their respective singles matches.

In doubles, the girls dominated early, but then faced real adversity. There was some tension, even though it was a dead rubber in this tie.

I think it’s normal—it’s been a while since Alizé (Cornet) played with this intensity, especially after just coming out of retirement. The Swedes made it a tough match. It’s very good to have come through like this, with some crazy points at the end and that 8-3 deficit in the super tiebreak. It’s good for confidence," Benneteau told the media of the French Tennis Federation.