'Hopefully our time now' - Britain into BJK Cup semi-finals

Katie Boulter says she is hopeful "this is Great Britain's time" to win a first Billie Jean King Cup title after an impressive 2-0 win over Japan secured their place in the semi-finals.

Boulter and Sonay Kartal triumphed in their singles matches on Thursday to set up a last-four meeting with the United States.

Should Britain beat the 18-time champions, they would reach a first final in 44 years and a fifth overall.

No nation has reached the BJK Cup title match more times than Britain's four without winning it.

Boulter and Jodie Burrage produced a superb doubles performance to beat the Netherlands 2-1 in April and qualify for the eight-team Finals, and they appear to be continuing their momentum in Shenzhen.

"This team qualified earlier in the year and we showed a lot of heart," Boulter said.

"The team deserves to be here and hopefully we can go to the final. Hopefully this is our time now."

Boulter is the nation's leading singles player in China in the absence of Emma Raducanu, who withdrew at the start of September to focus on playing on the WTA Tour instead.

But despite that blow Britain looked strong against Japan, with Kartal first winning 6-3 7-6 (7-4) against Ena Shibahara before Boulter ruthlessly beat Moyuka Uchijima 6-2 6-.

"Sonay put in a clinical performance so she makes it easy to follow," added Boulter.

Boulter has endured a difficult season in singles and her opening-round loss at the US Open saw her drop of the top 50.

But she has always been impressive when representing her country, winning 17 of 23 matches played for Britain.

Boulter's serving was strong throughout against Uchijima, with the Briton winning 70% of first-serve points.

After getting the first break in the fifth game of the opening set, Boulter reeled off the next three games on her way to taking the first set.

Boulter maintained that momentum with a break at the start of the second set, with her aggressive play always having Uchijima on the defence.

The pressure proved too much as Boulter secured two further breaks on the way to a dominant win.

"I stayed out there as much as possible and tried to focus on myself," Boulter said.

"I am super happy to be through and it is nice to have some British fans here."

World number 82 Kartal, who reached the fourth round at Wimbledon for the first time this summer, has won all three of her BJK Cup ties since making her debut earlier this year.

Kartal was confident and in control from the outset against Shibahara, claiming back-to-back breaks on her way to racing into a 4-0 lead.

Shibahara looked nervous early on but shifted the momentum her way when she won eight points in a row to claw back to 4-3.

But with a break still behind her, Kartal halted Shibahara's run with a hold to love that unsettled her opponent once more. Mistakes crept in on the Japanese's service game, allowing Kartal to take advantage and clinch the opening set.

The second set was a far closer affair, and Kartal had to dig deep to fend off a break-point chance at 4-4.

Although she could not break the obstinate Shibahara's serve, Kartal dominated the tie-break, securing victory on her second match point.

"Their [Japan's] whole team is super tough so I knew it was not going to be easy in the slightest," Kartal said.

"I tried to play my game when things got tough and stay aggressive. I backed myself all the way."