Women's Tennis Sees Three Waves Compete in Billie Jean King Cup Opening Rounds
4/13/2026 8:00:00 PM | Women's Tennis
MALIBU, Calif. — Pepperdine women's tennis was well-represented on the world stage through the opening rounds of the Billie Jean King Cup held this past weekend.
Freshman Sonja Zhiyenbayeva (Kazakhstan) along with alumnae Lisa Zaar '23 (Sweden) and Janice Tjen '24 (Indonesia) competed in the opening rounds of the event while representing their home countries.
The Billie Jean King Cup is the premier international team competition in women's tennis, featuring national teams competing across multiple regional groups and qualifying rounds in pursuit of a spot in the finals later this year.
Zhiyenbayeva, representing Kazakhstan in the Qualifiers, faced a strong test against Canada on April 10. In singles action, she battled former US Open champion Bianca Andreescu, eventually falling in a tightly contested match, 6-4, 7-6(6). Kazakhstan ultimately secured a 3-1 victory over Canada to advance to the finals, which will take place in Shenzhen, China from September 22-27. Kazakhstan was one of eight countries to secure their spot in September.
Zhiyenbayeva has burst onto the collegiate scene this season as one of the top freshmen in the country. She has posted a 12-2 singles record and currently sits at No. 42 in the ITA singles rankings and No. 12 in the doubles rankings. She has also earned West Coast Conference Freshman of the Week on seven occasions.
Zaar competed for Sweden in the Europe/Africa Group I stage, helping her nation advance with a perfect 4-0 record. Sweden opened with a 2-1 win over Denmark on April 8, before earning consecutive 2-1 victories against Germany and Portugal on April 9 to win Group D with three wins in three matches. Zaar contributed key doubles wins alongside Caijsa Wilda Hennemann against both Germany (6-2, 6-4) and Portugal (1-6, 6-4, 10-3). Sweden advanced to the promotion playoff, where it defeated Serbia 2-1 to advance.
Zaar was a two-time All-American and 3x All-WCC First Team selection for the Waves before graduating in 2024. She has since enjoyed a successful pro career, achieving WTA career-high ranks of 395 in singles and 168 in doubles.
Tjen delivered a series of unblemished performances for Indonesia in the Asia/Oceania Group I main draw, going a perfect 4-0 in singles across the week as Indonesia went 4-1 as a team. She opened with a 6-3, 6-1 win over New Zealand's Monique Barry on April 7, then followed with dominant straight-set victories over India's Sahaja Yamalapalli (6-2, 6-1), Korea's Eunhye Lee (6-2, 6-2) and Thailand's Anchisa Chanta (6-2, 6-4). Indonesia posted wins over New Zealand (2-1), Mongolia (3-0), India (3-0) and Korea (2-1), before narrowly falling to Thailand, 2-1, in its final tie.
Tjen was a three-time All-American with the Waves and former WCC Player of the Year. She notably made it to the 2024 NCAA Doubles National Championship match, falling to achieve runner-up honors. Tjen was the breakout star on the WTA circuit this past season, becoming the first Indonesian woman to win a grand slam match in over 20 years with her win over No. 24 Veronika Kudermetova at the US Open. She went on to earn a first round win at the Australian Open as well, eventually jumping up to No. 36 in the WTA singles rankings and No. 42 in the doubles ranks.
The trio's performances highlight Pepperdine's continued growing presence on the global stage, as current and former Waves continue to compete against the top international talent in the sport's most prestigious individual and team events. Savannah Broadus '25 also saw success this past weekend, winning the ITF W35 Boca Raton doubles title alongside Abigail Rencheli.
The Billie Jean King Cup features multiple tiers of competition throughout the year. The April Qualifiers are contested as home-and-away ties between 14 nations, with each tie consisting of five matches, four singles and one doubles, played across two days. The seven winning nations advance to the Finals later in the year, while the losing teams move to the playoffs.
At the regional level, teams compete in Group I events across Europe/Africa, Asia/Oceania and the Americas. These week-long tournaments are played in a round-robin pool format followed by promotion and relegation playoffs, with top-performing nations earning a chance to advance to the global playoff stage.
For more information on the Billie Jean King Cup, including full results and format details, visit here.
The full results for the Waves in competition are below:
Sonja Zhiyenbayeva (Kazakhstan)
Kazakhstan 3, Canada 1
Bianca Andreescu def. Zhiyenbayeva: 6-4, 7-6(6)
Lisa Zaar (Sweden)
Group D pool play
Sweden 2, Denmark 1
Emma Kamper/Johanna Christine Svendson def. Lisa Zaar/Linea Barjaliu: 6-3, 0-6, 12-10
Sweden 2, Germany 1
Lisa Zaar/Caijsa Wilda Hennemann def. Ella Seidel/Tessa Johanna Brockmann: 6-2, 6-4
Sweden 2, Portugal 1
Lisa Zaar/Caijsa Wilda Hennemann def. Matilde Jorge/Francisca Jorge: 1-6, 6-4, 10-3
Promotion Playoff
Sweden 2, Serbia 1
Emma Kamper/Johanne Christine Svendsen def.Linea Bajraliu/Lisa Zaar: 6-3, 0-6, 12-10
Janice Tjen (Indonesia)
Indonesia 2, New Zealand 1
Tjen def. Monique Barry: 6-3, 6-1
Indonesia 3, India 0
Tjen def. Sahaja Yamalapalli: 6-2, 6-1
Indonesia 2, Korea 1
Tjen def. Eunhye Lee: 6-2, 6-2
Thailand 2, Indonesia 1
Tjen def. Anchisa Chanta: 6-2, 6-4
ABOUT PEPPERDINE WOMEN'S TENNIS
Pepperdine women's tennis has been a consistent powerhouse in the collegiate scene, reaching 40 NCAA Tournaments since 1982 including 28 straight appearances. Since 2018, the program has seen three national runner-ups between both singles and doubles while reaching an NCAA Regional as a team eight times in the past nine tournaments. The success at the conference level has been paramount with 33 WCC Championships including an active streak of 11 consecutive conference titles. With its 24 total All-Americans, the program has also consistently sent players to the pro circuit following their time in Malibu.
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