PRAGUE — Petra Kvitova overcame a slow start and rallied for a 2-6, 6-1, 6-1 victory over Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova on Saturday to give defending champion Czech Republic a 1-0 lead over Russia in the Fed Cup final.
Amid increased security measures following the terrorist attacks in Paris, the Czech player converted her first match point when the 28th-ranked Russian double-faulted.
The players and 13,000 spectators at Prague's O2 Arena observed a minute of silence during the opening ceremony for the victims of the deadly attacks.
Kvitova led the Czechs to three Fed Cup titles in the last four years but was not able to find her game in the first set before staging a comeback.