Kingston tennis star Melanie South helped Great Britain to salvage their Group 1 status at the Federation Cup tournament in Hungary last week.
Staring relegation in the face after narrow defeats to Denmark, Switzerland and Hungary, Team GB responded with a comfortable victory over Portugal to avoid the dreaded drop.
South, representing Great Britain for the first time at this level, appeared in a doubles contest against Switzerland where she slipped to a narrow defeat with partner Elena Baltacha.
Despite the disappointing earlier results coach Nigel Sears insisted progress was being made.
Sears said: "We needed to survive as going down to Group 2 would have been a disaster.
"I feel that all the girls performed well throughout the week and we will get straight back to work on strengthening the team for next year.
"I feel encouraged that the players have improved and I expect things to accelerate next year."
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