A ruthless Katie Boulter secured Great Britain’s place in the Billie Jean King Cup semi-finals with a 2-0 win against Japan.

Boulter, the nation’s leading singles player in Shenzhen in the absence of Emma Raducanu, played aggressively to beat Moyuka Uchijima 6-2 6-1 in the second singles match.

Sonay Kartal had early given Anne Keothavong’s side the perfect start with a 6-3 7-6 (7-4) victory over Ena Shibahara.

Great Britain will now face the United States on Saturday as they look to keep alive their hopes of winning the women’s team tournament for the first time, having lost in the final on four previous occasions.

“Sonay put in a clinical performance out there so she made it really easy to follow,” Boulter said.

“This team qualified earlier in the year and we showed a lot of heart. We have another shot at a final.

“Hopefully this is our time now.”

Boulter’s serving was strong throughout, the Briton winning 70% of first-serve points, and she never looked in any real danger against Uchijima.

After getting the first break in the fifth game of the opening set, Boulter reeled off the next three games on her way to taking the first set.

Boulter maintained that momentum with a break at the start of the second set, with her aggressive play always having Uchijima on the defence.

The pressure proved too much as Boulter secured two further breaks on the way to a dominant win.