Australia's chances of Billie Jean King Cup glory have been dramatically boosted after a major upset has blown the tournament wide open.
The BJK Cup is the World Cup of women's tennis, bringing the top nations together as they compete for illustrious silverware.
Slovakia's shock 2-1 victory over the United States means Australia will face the Slovaks in the BJK Cup quarter-finals in Málaga, Spain.
After trailing 1-0, former Australian Open finalist Danielle Collins was ousted in straight sets by Rebecca Sramkova, before a tight win in the doubles decider secured Slovakia's progression.
If the Aussies defeat Slovakia in the last eight, they will face either Canada or Great Britain in the semi-finals, and then potentially await one of Poland, Czechia, Japan or Italy in the final.
Ajla Tomljanović, Olivia Gadecki, Daria Saville, Kimberly Birrell and doubles specialist Ellen Perez have been selected by team captain Samantha Stosur to partake in the Finals.
Seven-time champions Australia have finished runners-up 10 times since last winning the title in 1974.
"We’ve had some wonderful results in recent years, making finals and semis and the like, but every year you have to start from scratch," Stosur said via Zoom from Spain. "You’ve got to do it all over again from the same starting point as everyone else this time around.
"But absolutely, [I have] lots of faith and confidence in all our players that we have here. We’ve got five very high-quality tennis players to be able to pick from and put our best foot forward on the court every single time we get [the] chance to get out there."
Málaga are currently battling heart-breaking floods that have rocked the city, forcing thousands of residents to flee their homes.
The severe weather impacted the commencement of the BJK Cup opener between Spain and Poland which was postponed by 24 hours.
"Look, it is what it is. Everyone was in the same position. Nobody got to do anything yesterday," Stosur said.
"Obviously, it’s not ideal, but I think flooding in the city is probably a bit more important than being able to hit some tennis balls."
Australia will begin their Finals campaign against Slovakia on Sunday 8pm AEDT, live on 9Gem and 9Now with commentary from The First Serve host Brett Phillips and former world No.4 Jelena Dokic.
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