Caroline Garcia upset Petra Kvitova to draw France level at 1-1 with the Czech Republic in the Fed Cup final after Karolina Pliskova had won an epic opener.
The US Open finalist and opponent Kristina Mladenovic contested the longest deciding set ever in a final before Pliskova eventually prevailed 6-3 4-6 16-14.
With in-form Kvitova to come, the two-time defending champions looked poised to take a commanding lead into the second day in Strasbourg.
But Garcia came to her country's rescue with an excellent performance against an error-prone Kvitova to win 7-6 (8/6) 6-3.
Earlier, Pliskova was on the brink of victory at 5-2 in the third set and 0-30 on the Mladenovic serve only for the Frenchwoman to fight back and level.
Mladenovic then saved two match points at 8-9 and a miraculous victory was on the cards when she broke the Pliskova serve to lead 12-11.
But back came the Czech with a break of her own and it was the world number six who made the decisive breakthrough after three hours and 48 minutes.
The Czechs have dominated the competition recently and are bidding to win the title for the fifth time in six years.
Source: PA
