The devastation was obvious on the faces of the Australians after their 3-2 Fed Cup Final loss to France at RAC Arena on Sunday night.
But there was something that made this defeat hurt just that little bit more than any other.
After close to 27,000 fans packed into the Arena over the two days of competition and created the sort of atmosphere players dream of, they were well aware this would be their last chance to experience of playing in front of a sea of green and gold.
From next year, the home-and-away format of the Fed Cup changes. Replacing it will be a six-day finals tournament in Budapest in April where 12 teams will face off for the crown.
Thanks to the 26,951 fans who packed out @RACArena – the second highest @FedCup Final attendance on record.@WestAustralia | #GoAussies #FedCupFinal pic.twitter.com/hlogpmRoZO
— TennisAustralia (@TennisAustralia) November 10, 2019
Australian captain Alicia Molik articulated the sense of loss following their experience in Perth.
“That’s going to be sad, I think, for us, in particular,” Molik said. “Experiencing a home final, Fed Cup Final is the ultimate in your home country. Unless the format changes we’ll never have one of those again so this was a really really special one and I think that’s why it’s probably difficult for all of us to come to grips with losing because it does mean so much.
“We love playing in Australia. We love spending time here and we have wonderful support network of friends and family. To us, it means so much to perform for those that really support us throughout the year. It’s a sad thing that the format is changing.”
Listen to Sam Maxwell and Casey Dellacqua talk about the Fed Cup changes in Episode One of Sport Insights with Emageo below.
It was a tough and tense deciding day of the final on Sunday, which opened with an epic singles match between the country’s respective No.1s Ash Barty and Kristina Mladenovic.
After a hot start from Barty, Mladenovic eventually triumphed 2-6 6-4 7-6 (1) to give the French the 2-1 lead.
Ajla Tomljanovic then rewarded Molik’s decision to back her in for the reverse singles, beating surprise selection Pauline Parmentier 6-4 7-5 to force it to a deciding doubles.
But Caroline Garcia and Mladenovic were too good for Sam Stosur and Ash Barty, winning the rubber and the trophy with the 6-4 6-3 victory.
Molik believed Mladenovic had taken the entire French team on her shoulders.
“We gave everything today,” Molik said. “There’s just times in sport you fall short. It hurts a lot, definitely.
“We’ll expect to be in another Fed Cup Final. I think we’ll be stronger, more resilient and more prepared because we’ve lived this moment. We’ll use this moment for fuel.”
Barty said while it was a tough result to come to terms with, she was proud of the team’s achievements over the past two years.
“I think you can see how much it means to all of us,” the world No.1 said. “It’s bitterly disappointing.
“It’s been an amazing journey. It’s (being in the final) very precious, we’ll cherish it and it will drive us more for next year.
“It’s going to be a tough one. But the journey that we’ve been on is simply remarkable.”
Stosur said she would be sticking around the Fed Cup camp for a while, but admitted this loss would take some time to get over.
The 35-year-old has been playing Fed Cup for 16 years and reflected the passion on show from both nations.
“This is a very hard moment,” Stosur said.
“There are probably not too many days when this moment wouldn’t have popped into my head over the last six months since Brisbane. I think all four players, all members of both teams wanted it badly. It’s unfortunate that we’re on the wrong end of it tonight but it is certainly a moment that we wish it wasn’t quite this way.”