Australia are into the final of the Billie Jean King Cup after Storm Sanders and Samantha Stosur came through a tie-break decider against Alicia Barnett and Olivia Nicholls.
All three sets were settled in that fashion, with the British pair fighting back to level the match and raise the potential of a fairytale first final since 1981. But it was Sanders and Stosur who came though the decider 10-6 to keep alive their country's bid for an eighth title.
They'll now face the winner of the Czech Republic v Switzerland tie in Sunday's finale in Glasgow. But Aussie captain Alicia Molik would have been relieved after the British pair, who only made their debuts for Great Britain this week, pushed their experienced opponents all the way amid a partisan atmosphere.
Britain had trailed 1-0 overall when on Saturday morning, Heather Watson lost to Sanders 6-4 7-6 (7-3) in their singles contest. Having played their two previous ties in the evening, Watson seemed affected by the morning start as she failed to find top gear.
Harriet Dart levelled the tie though by beating Ajla Tomljanovic 7-6 6-2, and suddenly, the prospect of Anne Keothavong's unseeded team upsetting the favourites became a realistic one. But after the first set went to a tie-break, Sanders and Stosur upped the ante to prevail 7-1.
At 3-3 in the second set though, Stosur was wider with a forehand when at break point on her own serve, only for Barnett to then faulter when she had the chance to serve for the set. Eventually another tie-break was needed, and at 5-4 Australia the British duo reeled off three straight points, two of them via volleys from Barnett, to draw level amid pandemonium in the stands.
That meant another tie-break, this time first to 10, to decide who would progress. And as the tension rose, the contest ebbed and flowed as the Australian pair came back from 3-1 down to lead 6-3.
From there, the pressure seemed to tell though and three straight unforced errors allowed Britain to bring it back to 6-6. Stosur then restored a slender lead with an exquisite soft volley at the net, and from there her and Saunders regained their composure.
A forehand winner at the net from Sanders and then a superb forehand from Stosur gave them three match points, and they only needed one of them after another Sanders winner. But despite her players appearing crestfallen afterwards, Keothavong will take great pride from her team's unlikely run, especially given they were missing lead player Emma Raducanu.
