Czech Republic Win Fed Cup

The Czech Republic secured back-to-back Fed Cup titles with a 3-1 win over Serbia before fervent fans in Prague.

A backhand winner from world number 17 Lucie Safarova sparked celebratory scenes in the Czech capital as she beat Jelena Jankovic 6-1 6-1.

Petra Kvitova and Safarova had put the defending champions in control on Saturday by winning the opening singles rubbers for a 2-0 lead.

Ana Ivanovic reduced the arrears by beating Kvitova 6-3 7-5 on Sunday.

But Safarova defeated Serb number two Jankovic in one hour and 17 minutes to prevent the first-time finalists becoming the first team in the competition's history to overturn a 2-0 deficit in the final.

The world number 17 hit 32 winners, describing her performance against the world number 22 as one of her best.

"It's hard to describe how I feel. I played an unbelievable game," Safarova said. "I desperately wanted to win and I'm really delighted. It's fantastic to win at home, in Prague. I played one of the best matches of my career."

Kvitova seemed to be suffering from the ill-effects of a cold that forced her to pull out of last week's WTA Championship.

The defeat by Ivanovic ended the world number eight's 11-game unbeaten run in the Fed Cup.

"I lost a lot of strength [on Saturday] and I was also drained emotionally," said Kvitova.

"I lacked energy. The doctor gave me some sugar during a bathroom break but it didn't help much."

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Czech's Make Good Fed Cup Start

The Czech Republic took a giant step towards successfully retaining the Fed Cup, by winning both singles on the opening day of the 2012 final against Serbia in Prague.

Straight sets victories for Lucie Safarova and Petra Kvitova have moved the reigning champions into a commanding 2-0 lead in this best-of-five two-day title decider in the Czech capital.

Safarova proved too strong for Ana Ivanovic, as she beat the former world No 1 6-4 6-3 in the opening contest at the O2 Arena, before Kvitova enjoyed an even easier win over Jelena Jankovic 6-4 6-1.

Safarova, the world No 17, sealed a straightforward triumph by breaking Ivanovic to love in the ninth game of the second set and admitted she was delighted to start the contest in positive fashion.

She said: "After I lost both matches in the final last year, I desperately wanted to win.

"We were both nervous at the start but I got rid of it and I was improving throughout the match."

The beaten world No 12 made eight double-faults and 32 unforced errors, and she added: "I'm very disappointed. I had plenty of opportunities but I just wasn't executing when it was important. It was very frustrating."

And Kvitova needed just 81 minutes to make it 2-0 against another former world No 1 Jankovic.

From 2-4 down in the opening set, Kvitova reeled off nine straight games before Jankovic stopped the rot at 0-5 in the second.

But by then it was too little, too late for the shell-shocked Serbs, as world No 8 Kvitova coasted across the finishing line with plenty to spare.

A happy Kvitova said: "I was surprised by how I played," as Jankovic suffered her first Fed Cup defeat in two years.

The Czechs are chasing a seventh Fed Cup title while Serbia are contesting their first final.

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Czech Republic Win Fed Cup

Czech Republic won the decisive doubles rubber to beat Russia 3-2 in the Fed Cup final in Moscow.

Lucie Hradecka and Kveta Peschke beat Maria Kirilenko and Elena Vesnina 6-4 6-2 to give the Czech's their first title as an independent nation after they split from Slovakia in 1993.

Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova took the Czechs to within a point with a 4-6 6-2 6-3 win over Svetlana Kuznetsova.

Russia's Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova then beat Lucie Safarova 6-2 6-4 to level.

In Saturday's opening session, Kvitova gave the Czechs the lead by beating Kirilenko 6-2 6-2 before two-time Grand Slam winner Kuznetsova defeated Safarova 6-2 6-3 to get Russia back on terms going into the final day.

"Petra won two points, but we needed one more," said Czech captain Petr Pala. "I'm glad we've managed to (get) the third one. We all won it because victory is made of small pieces you have to put together. It's team work."

Russia captain Shamil Tarpischev also praised Kvitova, who won six times this season and climbed to number two in the world.

"The Czechs won thanks to Kvitova's superb play," Tarpischev said. "She was just great."

In the decider, the Russian pair broke early for a 4-2 lead, but the Czechs won four consecutive games to take the first set and then raced to a 5-2 lead in the second. The home duo saved three match points on Vesnina's serve before she sent a shot wide on the fourth.

"The Czechs played unbelievably well, they dominated the game and left us no chance," Vesnina said. "It was tough to get something going today, but we fought until the very end."

Kvitova and Kuznetsova traded breaks three times in the first set before the Czech, 5-4 down on her serve in the 10th game, netted a backhand to go 1-0 down in the match.

But Kvitova won five consecutive games in the second set and, trailing 3-0 in the decider, went on to close out the match with a backhand winner on her second match point.

"I wasn't playing my tennis in the first set, making too many mistakes, while Svetlana moved and returned very well," said Kvitova.

"It was tough to come back into the match in the second set. In the third set I was 3-0 down and I didn't think I could still win. I managed to come back on Svetlana's serve and it was a very important moment in the match."

The Czechs' last triumph came when, playing as Czechoslovakia, they beat the former Soviet Union 2-1 in the 1988 final.

Russia, who were without the injured Maria Sharapova and Vera Zvonareva, have won the Fed Cup four times since 2004 and were unbeaten at home in 10 ties since losing to France in the semi-finals in 2003.