Great Britain's Billie Jean King Cup playoff tie with Sweden is delicately poised after both nations clinched opening wins in Saturday's action.
Jodie Burrage had a debut match to forget as she fell to a 4-6 1-6 defeat to Kajsa Rinaldo Persson, but Katie Boulter got her teammate out of jail by beating Caijsa Hennemann 6-2 6-1.
Facing a player ranked 279 places below her in the WTA standings, Burrage made a statement of intent early on, earning the double break for a 4-0 lead before an alarming capitulation.
The world number 93 only took 43% of points behind her first serve as Persson won six games on the bounce to remarkably take the opener, and Burrage could not recover after being broken to love in the first game of the second set.
Despite a handful of double faults, Persson stunned the 24-year-old in one hour and 20 minutes to hand Sweden an early advantage, and Burrage admitted that the weight of expectation had taken its toll on her.
"I have not felt like this and even the nerves before have not felt like this. Ever. I'm very disappointed that I didn't get everyone a win," BBC Sport quotes Burrage as saying during a press conference.
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"It's not just me out there. I'm playing for other people and that type of pressure I have never really understood before and I don't think you ever do until you do it. That's why it hurts even more, because I'm hurting for other people."
While Burrage's maiden BJK Cup match did not go to plan, Boulter brought a wealth of international experience into her tie with Hennemann, who was no match for the British number one.
Boulter set the tone with a break to love in the first game of the match, although she had to beat away no fewer than five break points for the Swede to get over the line in the first set, four of which came in the final game.
Hennemann would stroll to a love hold in the first game of the second set, but there was no further joy for the world number 532, as Boulter took each of the three break points she fashioned to prevail in one hour and 17 minutes.
Sunday's action will begin with Boulter facing Persson, while Burrage is due to take on Hennemann, although team captain Anne Keothavong could potentially call upon Heather Watson or Harriet Dart to take the 24-year-old's place after Saturday's shock loss.
If GB and Sweden still cannot be separated after four matches, Dart and Watson are set to battle Lisa Zaar and Bella Bergkvist Larsson in a winner-takes-all doubles tie.
Ben Knapton
