Slovak Republic faced a tricky trip to Serbia without the services of Dominika Cibulkova, which increased the pressure on Daniela Hantuchova, the team’s No. 1 player. Hantuchova, however, was equal to the challenge and won all three of her rubbers without dropping a set, including an impressive 76(2) 75 victory over Jelena Jankovic. Slovak Republic will now compete in the World Group for the first time since 2004.

Spain maintained its place in World Group II, as Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez won both her singles rubbers to help the away team defeat Poland. Martinez Sanchez overcame Marta Domachowska 76(4) 62 and then triumphed in the battle of the No. 1s, winning 63 64 against the then world No. 8, Agnieszka Radwanska.

Samantha Stosur continued her impressive recent form in Fed Cup play by extending her unbeaten run to 12 rubbers – her last defeat came back in 2007. With Australia holding a 1-0 lead over Ukraine, Stosur sealed the vital points with straight-set victories over Mariya Koryttseva and Lyudmyla Kichenok. The Aussies will be playing in the World Group for the first time since 2004.

Despite the much-hyped return of Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin to Fed Cup, it was Yanina Wickmayer who once again proved to be the foundation of the Belgian team. Clijsters and Henin picked up injuries during the weekend, as Wickmayer won both her singles rubbers in three sets against Kaia Kanepi and Maret Ani. These two results sealed Belgium’s place in the World Group for the first time since 2007.

Kimiko, who will turn 40 years old in September, made her Fed Cup comeback having not played for Japan since 1996. She impressively won all four of her singles rubbers without dropping a set, helping the Japanese team to reach the World Group II Play-offs. In the final tie, she suffered an ankle injury in the first game against Chinese Taipei’s Yung-Jan Chan, a Top 100 player, but battled on to win in two tight sets.

Tamarine, a Fed Cup veteran having played 63 rubbers, displayed her usual passion for representing Thailand. She remained unbeaten in singles play during the round-robin stage, including an impressive straight sets victory over Kazakhstan’s Yaroslava Shvedova, a Top 50 player. Due to injury, she was unfortunately sidelined for the play-off tie against New Zealand.

Mariana maintained a 100 per cent record in the round-robin stage, playing in the No. 1 position for Colombia. Her hard fought singles win over Paraguay’s Rosana de los Rios - and subsequent doubles victory - in the final pool match fired her team into the promotion play-off against Canada, in which she was defeated by Aleksandra Wozniak.

Maria-Fernanda demonstrated outstanding team spirit throughout the week, leading Brazil to victories over Puerto Rico and Cuba, and a fourth place finish. In the final round-robin tie, she came from a set down to defeat Canada’s Aleksandra Wozniak, the only loss for the Top 40 player.

Katarina - a former Top 20 player who is now ranked in the 400s - suffered numerous injuries that kept her out of action in 2009, making her exploits for Slovenia all the more impressive. She remained unbeaten throughout the week, leading her team into the World Group II Play-offs for the first time since 2005.

Arantxa, competing in her third Fed Cup campaign, won three out of four singles rubbers playing in the No. 1 position, helping Netherlands to finish in joint fifth place. In all her matches, she was the lower ranked player. Her comfortable victory over Shahar Peer was the stand-out result of the week, as the Israeli is currently ranked just outside the world’s Top 20.