Canada falls to Japan in Billie Jean King Cup

Canada was unable to qualify for the Billie Jean King Cup finals after Japan pulled off a 2-1 comeback victory on Sunday.

Victoria Mboko got Canada off to a good start after winning the opening singles match, outlasting Ena Shibahara 6-4, 6-7(8), 7-5 in a marathon match that lasted almost three hours on the indoor hard court.

Japan was able to turn things around after Moyuka Uchijima beat Marina Stakusic 6-3, 6-3 to tie the series.

It then came down to a doubles match with Rebecca Marino and Kayla Cross going up against Shibahara and Shuko Aoyama. The Japanese duo was able to come out on top with a 6-3, 5-7, 6-2 victory.

Canada entered the winner-take-all clash after beating Romania 3-0. Now Canada will head into a playoff round to compete for entry into the finals.

Japan will make its second appearance in the finals after losing to Italy in the quarterfinals last year.