The last time Australia faced Kazakhstan, Storm Hunter led her country to an inspired victory despite an exhausting and chaotic week.
Melbourne, VIC, Australia, 9 April 2025 | Jackson Mansell
As Australia prepares to play Kazakhstan in the 2025 Billie Jean King Cup Qualifiers in Brisbane, we look back to the last time the two nations met in the international women’s team competition.
Storm Hunter’s Billie Jean King Cup performance in the 2023 Finals against Kazakhstan is arguably the greatest of her career.
However, few remember that it came amid one of the most chaotic weeks she has experienced.
Fresh off her WTA Finals campaign in Cancun, prolonged due to rain, Hunter caught three flights in 24 hours to arrive in Seville moments before Australia’s opening tie against Slovenia. Yet that would only be the beginning of her frantic week.
“I literally got to the courts as the ceremony before the first match started. I rocked up, I didn’t have my luggage, I had two racquets, and I ended up playing doubles that day,” Hunter recalled. “Then we had the day off and played Kazakhstan.”
Following their defeat to Slovenia, the Kazakhstan tie presented a must-win scenario to keep Australia’s knockout stage hopes alive.
Outgoing captain Alicia Molik opted for an unexpected singles pairing, replacing Daria Saville and Ajla Tomljanovic with Kimberly Birrell and Hunter.
READ MORE: Tomljanovic better for Billie Jean King Cup experience
Hunter’s rubber against Anna Danilina would be her first singles match in six weeks, and her first for the green-and-gold since the 2022 BJK Cup final against Switzerland.
“With that late travel and everything, that night before that tie, I got told I was playing singles. I was like ‘Oh, I literally don’t have any time to prepare’, but I’ve got a job to do. They obviously put their trust in me to play,” Hunter said.
“I was really tired and exhausted, but also on a high because I had just been told I was world No.1 in doubles. No matter [the match] – singles or doubles – I was on a high and to be with the team always gives you that extra energy.”
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Hunter prevailed in straight sets against Anna Danilina to start the tie on the right foot, and after Yulia Putintseva defeated Birrell in the second singles rubber, Hunter returned to court in an attempt to salvage victory.
Her doubles partner, Ellen Perez, was in a similar position to Hunter, having previously played at the WTA Finals.
It made their eventual triumph even sweeter as the pair defeated Danilina and Putintseva in the deciding rubber 6-1 4-6 [10-5] to clinch the tie.
Hunter ranks the 2023 battle against Kazakhstan highly given the circumstances.
“It was a super big achievement just because of everything that I had gone through to get there and also with Ellen landing literally the day before as well from the WTA Finals,” she said.
PEREZ: “Any time we play for Australia, it’s a big event”
“For the doubles, we were both very underdone but it goes to show that when you are representing your country, you find an extra bit of energy and belief. It’s not just about you, you’ve got the teammates on the side’s energy.”
Unfortunately, Australia failed to qualify for the knockout stage on set difference. Yet their spirits remained high, having sent Molik off in style.
“I know as a team we really wanted to get the win for Alicia and because we were coming off the loss against Slovenia, we very much wanted to finish on a high and for her to finish her career as captain on a high,” Hunter said, who until that point had played her whole BJK Cup career under Molik.
“[It was] not so much about winning or losing but leaving it all out on the court and making her proud of us. So that was really special to have that last moment with her.”
Hunter is a member of the Culture Amp Australian Billie Jean King Cup team which will face Kazakhstan on Thursday and which vies to make the finals for the sixth time in a row.
STORM HUNTER: Hitting well, feeling good, meeting goals
READ: Hunter set for emotional Billie Jean King Cup return in Brisbane
She aims to draw inspiration from her performance in Seville as she dons the green-and-gold for the first time since rupturing her Achilles last April.
“It’s funny because both ties are different but similar in the sense of like I’ve had a lot of things happening in the background and in a way when you step out on the court, you’ve got to forget about those things and just compete,” she said.
“That’s something that I did back then (in the 2023 tie) and I actually think about it a lot because it is one of those moments where I could easily just think I’m too tired or I’m too sore.
“I really fought hard and really thought about trying to get the win for Australia and just really boosted the spirit of our team.”
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