Italy Wraps Up Second Fed Cup Title

Everything was all but over after Italy raced out to a 2-0 lead on Saturday, but it wasn't officially over until Sunday, when Flavia Pennetta beat Melanie Oudin 7-5, 6-2 in the first reverse singles rubber to clinch the 2009 Fed Cup crown for Italy.

Oudin played well and fought hard, but the slow surface was ultimately her undoing.  She didn't look nearly as lost on the clay as Glatch had yesterday, but it was clear that just about any other surface would have made the match at least a three-setter, if not a win for the young American.

The more surprising result from Reggio Calabria Sunday was in the meaningless doubles tie, in which Roberta Vinci and Sara Errani surprised Liezel Huber and Vania King to make it a 4-0 sweep for Italy.  Liezel Huber switched her citizenship from South African to American in large part so she could have a chance to compete in international competitions like Fed Cup and the Olympics, so it's somewhat surprising she allowed herself to lose to a decidedly inferior team in Vinci and Errani.

Of course, everything would have been very different in the Fed Cup finals if the two best American players had shown up.  Or even one of them, for that matter.  This fact was not lost on Melanie Oudin.

I wanted to come here. I wanted to play for my country. Other people choose different things. Some people I guess didn't want to play as badly as I did.

It'll be interesting to see what happens once Oudin faces a Williams sister on the court, that's for sure.