Sonay Kartal and Katie Boulter lost their respective singles matches as Great Britain were beaten by a strong Czech Republic side in the Billie Jean King Cup quarter-finals.
Anne Keothavong’s team headed into the tie as underdogs, with all five Czech players placed higher in the singles rankings than any of the British squad.
Sonay Kartal produced a gritty performance as she returned to tennis after six months out with a lower back injury, but fell to a narrow 7-6 (7-2) 4-6 6-4 defeat in a marathon three-hour encounter with Marie Bouzkova.
Boulter could do little to get Britain back into the best-of-three tie as she was outplayed 6-2 7-6 (7-3) by Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova.
It was a second successive loss for Boulter at the hands of a Czech player, coming just three weeks after a 58-minute demolition by Karolina Muchova at the US Open.
It is the first time since 2023 that Britain have failed to reach the semi-finals at the Billie Jean King Cup and their wait for a maiden title will go on for another year.
The Czech Republic, who are 11-time winners of the tournament and the only team boasting two top-10 players at the Finals, will face either Kazakhstan or Spain in Friday’s semi-finals.
Playing her first match since retiring injured in the fourth round at Indian Wells in March, Kartal started well and struck early against world number 26 Bouzkova.
However, she was broken back immediately and Bouzkova dominated the tie-break to take the opener.
The Briton broke early in the second set and held on to force a decider, but her first double fault of the match handed Bouzkova a break for a 4-2 lead.
Kartal delayed defeat by saving three match points and breaking back, but Bouzkova restored her lead immediately to clinch victory after exactly three hours on court to put the Czechs in front.
With Noskova and Muchova – this year’s Wimbledon finalists – in the Czech squad, it was always going to be a uphill battle for number one Boulter.
Two double faults in the first game saw Boulter drop serve early and world number six Noskova steamrolled her way through the opening four games before wrapping up the set.
Boulter improved in the second set and threatened to force a decider, but she was unable to create a single break point and Noskova took control of the tie-break to send her nation into the semi-finals.
