Great Britain’s long wait to win the Billie Jean King Cup continues after Slovakia staged an impressive fightback to reach the final.

British number two Emma Raducanu put her team in early command with a 6-4 6-4 victory over Viktoria Hruncakova at the start of Tuesday’s semi-final.

Katie Boulter, Britain’s leading singles player, then missed the opportunity to secure victory by losing 2-6 6-4 6-4 to Slovakian number one Rebecca Sramkova.

It meant British hopes of reaching the final for the first time since 1981 – when the competition was known as the Federation Cup – rested on a deciding doubles match.

But Heather Watson and Olivia Nicholls, who were called upon for the first time this week, lost 6-2 6-2 to Hruncakova and Tereza Mihalikova.

More to follow.