GAINESVILLE: Top-ranked Nelly Korda and England’s Charley Hull will meet to start Sunday’s 12 singles matches at the Solheim Cup as Europe seeks a historic comeback to beat the United States. Pairings for the closing session at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club also feature Spain’s Carlota Ciganda against ninth-ranked Rose Zhang and France’s 10th-ranked Celine Boutier against Lexi Thompson.

After going 2-2 in Saturday’s four-ball and foursomes matches, the Americans take a 10-6 lead into Sunday’s 12 concluding singles matches, needing four wins and a draw to capture the Cup for the first time since 2017.

“We’re going to go try to win as many points early as we can and try to get this thing done,” US captain Stacy Lewis said. “I feel good with where we’re at and I’m excited about tomorrow.” After Korda, Lewis has Megan Khang against Denmark’s Emily Pedersen, Alison Lee against England’s Georgia Hall, Allisen Corpuz against Sweden’s Anna Nordqvist and Zhang against Ciganda.

“Tomorrow’s lineup was based off how they’ve played this week,” Lewis said. “We have strokes gained data on every match and every round these players have played, so that’s where the pairings came from.” Europe needs eight wins Sunday at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club to take the trophy for an unprecedented fourth consecutive time. “We need a massive day tomorrow. We need to go another record singles series again. It has been done before,” European captain Suzann Pettersen said. “It will be a miracle, but we’ve seen it before.”

Europe would need to match the greatest last-day comeback in Solheim history, the Americans’ 2015 rally from 10-6 down in Germany. “Win your own point. Have fun out there. Enjoy it,” Hull said. “Just kick some ass.”

Pettersen cited European men’s 2012 Ryder Cup fightback from 10-6 down to win, dubbed the Miracle at Medinah, as a source of inspiration. “We’ve seen miracles before,” said Pettersen. “Medinah. Germany 2015. We’ve given ourselves a chance. As long as there’s hope, these girls will fight -- 10-6? It’s absolutely doable.”

Germany’s Esther Henseleit, the Paris Olympic runner-up, plays Andrea Lee ahead of Boutier and Thompson in match seven, followed by Sweden’s Maja Stark against Lauren Coughlin, Swiss Albane Valenzuela against second-ranked Lilia Vu, Sweden’s Madelene Sagstrom against Sarah Schmelzel, Ireland’s Leona Maguire against Ally Ewing and Swede Linn Grant against Jennifer Kupcho in the last match. “If we don’t get enough points in the first six, seven matches, it’s game over anyway,” Pettersen said. “We have to go strong. We have to try and cover the top half.

“It’s a tough task. It’s a lot to ask. All you can do is just go out hard, play your heart out, and hopefully we get enough points that we can keep this exciting and fun for the bottom half.”

Lewis loves the joy

After hoisting no hardware three times in a row, Lewis has enjoyed seeing her players dancing and laughing through the week. “To do it with the joy that they’re doing it with, it’s the coolest part to me,” Lewis said. “To stand back on that first tee and watch them jumping around and dancing and having fun, it’s pure joy.

“Because we’ve been on the wrong side of this thing for three in a row, there hasn’t been that. There’s been a lot of the other. I’ve enjoyed that more than I enjoy the scoreboard.” Pettersen said she benched Maguire, a five-match starter last year who took three points, for three pairs matches this time over form issues.

“We kind of had to go by form,” she said. “Unfortunately up until now, Leona hasn’t been the rock I was hoping for. That doesn’t mean she’s not fired up about going out there and playing her absolute best.” — AFP