WESLEY CHAPEL, Fla. (AP) Katerina Siniakova beat Shelby Rogers in straight sets to bring the defending champion Czech Republic even with the United States at 1-1 in the Fed Cup semifinals on Saturday.
CoCo Vandeweghe defeated Marketa Vondrousova 6-1, 6-4 in the first match Saturday, giving the U.S. an early 1-0 lead in the best-of-five series. Vandeweghe, who is ranked No. 24, raced to a one-set lead against the 19-year-old Vondrousova in 27 minutes en route to her seventh straight Fed Cup win.
In the second match, Siniakova outlasted Rogers 6-3, 6-3. Siniakova, who is ranked 38th, converted all five break points. The 49th ranked Rogers finished the second set by double faulting to end the ninth game.
The Czechs have won the top team event in women's tennis the last three years and five of the last six. The winner of this series will play Belarus or Switzerland for the title on Nov. 11-12. That semifinal is also tied 1-1.
