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Italy silenced an angry French team to set up a Fed Cup semi-final with champions Russia.

Bad feeling between France and Italy continued to simmer on Sunday but it did not stop Italy from romping to a 5-0 win in the first-round tie.

A day after the French asked for Flavia Pennetta's win over Amelie Mauresmo to be overturned, the Italian kept her cool to demolish a tearful Alize Cornet 6-2 6-2 in Orleans, France.

Sara Errani defeated Mauresmo 6-3 6-4 and the Italians kept up the winning streak by also winning the doubles.

"It's a harsh defeat," summed up France captain Nicolas Escude.

Cornet (pictured), who struggled to find her service rhythm, burst into tears after being broken for the fifth time in the match.

She was given a point penalty deep in the second set when she contested a Pennetta shot while the point was being played.

Pennetta, who was given a verbal warning and fined $2,000 on Saturday for making an obscene gesture towards the umpire during her match against Mauresmo, ignored the disruption and wrapped up victory in 78 minutes.

On Saturday, France said Pennetta should have been disqualified for showing her middle finger to the umpire but the host team's protest was not heard.

Czech Republic 4-1 Spain

Czech Republic booked a place in the Fed Cup semi-finals with a 4-1 victory against favourites Spain.

Petra Kvitova secured the Czechs' win with 6-4 7-5 victory over Nuria Llagostera Vives in the fourth rubber.

In the earlier match Lucie Safarova, a late replacement for compatriot Iveta Benesova, battled back in the second set to defeat world number 30 Carla Suarez Navarro 6-4 6-3.

Suarez Navarro was unable to reproduce the form that carried her to the quarter-finals of last month's Australian Open and lost both of her matches in Brno.

Five-times champions and 2008 finalists Spain were expected to roll over the Czechs since they hold a 2-0 record over the hosts.

The Czechs reached the Fed Cup semi-finals for the first time since 1997 and will face either the United States or Argentina in April.

Russia 5-0 China

Anna Chakvetadze put Russia into the Fed Cup semi-finals by defeating Yan Zi of China 6-1 6-2 to give the defending champions an unassailable lead en route to a 5-0 sweep.

In the following two dead rubbers 19-year-old debutant Alisa Kleibanova beat Sun Tian-Tian 6-1, 6-1 to make it 4-0, and then Elena Dementieva and Svetlana Kuznetsova completed the whitewash, beating Yan Zi and Sun Tian-Tian.

On Saturday world number seven Kuznetsova put Russia into the lead, beating Yan in straight sets 6-2 6-4, while Australian Open semi-finalist Dementieva made it 2-0 defeating Zhang Shuai 6-3 6-0.

Chakvetadze, currently 19th in the WTA rankings, clinched victory in one hour seven minutes to record her third win over Yan Zi in four head-to-head meetings.

"I was a bit nervous as it was very important for me to win today to support my teammates' successes on Saturday," Chakvetadze said. "I also had problems with my serve."

"But everything went all right in the end and I'm happy with that."

The 21-year-old Russian opened confidently breaking her opponent twice for a commanding 4-0 advantage before the 24-year-old Yan got on the board.

Chakvetadze grabbed another break in the seventh game to take the opening set in 29 minutes.

In the second set the players traded breaks early on but Chakvetadze still looked the more precise and confident even though she collected 10 double faults in the match.

She produced two more breaks of serve to win the match on her first matchpoint ensuring Russia qualified for the last four of the Fed Cup.

The Chinese effort was hampered by the absence of their number one player Zheng Jie due to a wrist injury she suffered in an Australian Open fourth round clash with Kuznetsova last month.

The Russians are targeting their fifth Fed Cup title in six years.

United States 3-2 Argentina

The Americans did not feel the absence of their top two players Serena and Venus Williams, who opted out of the tie, as they battled back to beat Argentina 3-2 by winning the last of Sunday's reverse singles to set up a clinching win in doubles.

Argentina had moved within one point of clinching the tie when Gisela Dulko overpowered Jill Craybas 6-1 6-3 in Sunday's first reverse singles for a 2-1 match lead after the teams split Saturday's opening matches.

Melanie Oudin kept the US side alive when the 17-year-old overcame Betina Jozami 2-6 6-1 6-2 to send the first-round tie into a climactic doubles showdown, which the US duo of Liezel Huber and Julie Ditty took 6-2 6-3 over Jozami and Dulko.

Reuters