Fed Cup
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An all-star line-up, including four of the Top 5 players on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour, will take center stage this weekend for the 2006 Fed Cup, the biggest international competition in women's tennis. The following is a brief look at this weekend's four first round World Group I ties. The winners of these ties will advance to the Fed Cup semifinals, to be held on the weekend of July 15 and 16, 2006.
France vs. Italy
Venue: Nancy, France (red clay, indoors)
French Team: Amélie Mauresmo, Nathalie Dechy, Emilie Loit and Virginie Razzano (Captain: Georges Goven)
Italian Team: Francesca Schiavone, Flavia Pennetta, Mara Santangelo and Roberta Vinci (Captain: Corrado Barazzutti)
France enters as the heavy favorite with a perfect 6-0 record against Italy (four wins came on clay). World No.1 Amélie Mauresmo anchors the French with a 14-5 clay court record in Fed Cup appearances. France won titles in 1997 and 2003 and is coming off successive 3-2 final losses to Russia. Mary Pierce will not be playing due to injury, but Nathalie Dechy will be filling the gap. After starting the year with several first round losses, she turned her season around last week by reaching the quarterfinals at Charleston, a Tier I event.
Never having advanced to a Fed Cup final, the Italians are relying on the services of Francesca Schiavone, who is 13-8 this year and made it to the final in Amelia Island. Mara Santangelo had a solid tournament on the green clay of Charleston, where she won two rounds before losing to eventual finalist Patty Schnyder, and earlier in the year she won her first Tour singles title at Bangalore.
Spain vs. Austria
Venue: Valencia, Spain (red clay, outdoors)
Spanish team: Anabel Media Garrigues, Lourdes Domínguez-Lino, María Sánchez Lorenzo and Virginia Ruano Pascual (Captain: Miguel Margets)
Austrian team: Sybille Bammer, Yvonne Meusburger, Tamira Paszek and Sandra Klemenschits (Captain: Alfred Tesar)
The Spaniards have a proud Fed Cup tradition with five titles and five final appearances but haven't reached a final since 2002. The last time Spain met Austria on clay was in 1984, when Austria won 3-0. World No.24 Anabel Medina Garrigues is 5-5 in Fed Cup matches and won her fifth career Tour singles title at Canberra earlier this year. Domínguez-Lino is making her Fed Cup debut. She recently claimed the Tier III title in Bogotá.
The Austrian squad will be led by world No.53 Sybille Bammer, who will need strong input from No.112 Meusburger and No.334 Paszek to take down the experienced Spaniards.
Germany vs. USA
Venue: Ettenheim, Germany (red clay, outdoors)
German team: Anna-Lena Groenefeld, Julia Schruff, Martina Müller and Sandra Kloesel (Captain: Barbara Rittner)
American team: Jill Craybas, Jamea Jackson, Shenay Perry and Vania King (Captain: Zina Garrison)
Without American stars Lindsay Davenport, Venus and Serena Williams, Meghann Shaughnessy and Lisa Raymond, the United States might be fielding their least experienced Fed Cup team in recent years. Jamea Jackson, Shenay Perry and Vania King are all making their Fed Cup debuts. In her 10th year as a professional, Jill Craybas is playing arguably her best career tennis, on Monday making her Top 40 debut.
Providing the firepower for the Germans is world No.14 Anna-Lena Groenefeld, who claimed her first Tour singles title earlier this year in Acapulco and reached her first Tier I semifinal over the weekend at Charleston. Julia Schruff, Martina Müller and Sandra Kloesel will try to help Groenefeld take down the Americans.
The Americans lead Germany 6-4 in the all-time rivalry, but Germany won the last two meetings in the 1992 semifinals and the 1987 finals. The U.S.A. has 17 Fed Cup titles and dominated the rest of the world between 1976 and 1982 when it won seven straight titles. Germany captured titles in 1987 and 1982.
Belgium vs. Russia
Venue: Liège, Belgium (red clay, indoors)
Belgian team: Kim Clijsters, Justine Henin-Hardenne, Kirsten Flipkens and Caroline Maes (Captain: Carl Maes)
Russian team: Nadia Petrova, Elena Dementieva, Maria Kirilenko and Dinara Safina (Captain: Shamil Tarpischev)
In arguably the most thrilling first round tie, world No.2 Kim Clijsters and No.4 Justine Henin-Hardenne will reunite to help Belgium end the winning run of two-time defending champion Russia. Clijsters and Henin-Hardenne led Belgium to its only Fed Cup title in 2001, defeating Russia in the final. But since then the two have played in only three ties together - the last in 2003. Henin-Hardenne has an 11-1 Fed Cup record (her only loss came in 2000 against American Monica Seles), and Clijsters is 18-2 and undefeated since 2000.
Russia will be without No.3 Maria Sharapova. Nadia Petrova, Elena Dementieva, Maria Kirilenko and Dinara Safina will try to make Russia the first winner of three consecutive titles since Spain in 1993-95. Dementieva won both of her singles and teamed with Safina to win the doubles to beat France last year. By winning Amelia Island and Charleston, Petrova extended her Tour-leading match win tally this season to 28, and is now ranked No.5 in the world. She is also the second player this year to win three titles, tying Mauresmo.
In World Group II, Japan hosts Switzerland; Croatia takes on Argentina; Thailand plays host to the Czech Republic; and Indonesia will play China. All of these nations are playing for promotion into the 2007 World Group I.
все активно болеем за наших девочек. и, возможно, 3 год подряд Россия выйдет в Чемпионы.
France vs. Italy
Venue: Nancy, France (red clay, indoors)
French Team: Amélie Mauresmo, Nathalie Dechy, Emilie Loit and Virginie Razzano (Captain: Georges Goven)
Italian Team: Francesca Schiavone, Flavia Pennetta, Mara Santangelo and Roberta Vinci (Captain: Corrado Barazzutti)
France enters as the heavy favorite with a perfect 6-0 record against Italy (four wins came on clay). World No.1 Amélie Mauresmo anchors the French with a 14-5 clay court record in Fed Cup appearances. France won titles in 1997 and 2003 and is coming off successive 3-2 final losses to Russia. Mary Pierce will not be playing due to injury, but Nathalie Dechy will be filling the gap. After starting the year with several first round losses, she turned her season around last week by reaching the quarterfinals at Charleston, a Tier I event.
Never having advanced to a Fed Cup final, the Italians are relying on the services of Francesca Schiavone, who is 13-8 this year and made it to the final in Amelia Island. Mara Santangelo had a solid tournament on the green clay of Charleston, where she won two rounds before losing to eventual finalist Patty Schnyder, and earlier in the year she won her first Tour singles title at Bangalore.
Spain vs. Austria
Venue: Valencia, Spain (red clay, outdoors)
Spanish team: Anabel Media Garrigues, Lourdes Domínguez-Lino, María Sánchez Lorenzo and Virginia Ruano Pascual (Captain: Miguel Margets)
Austrian team: Sybille Bammer, Yvonne Meusburger, Tamira Paszek and Sandra Klemenschits (Captain: Alfred Tesar)
The Spaniards have a proud Fed Cup tradition with five titles and five final appearances but haven't reached a final since 2002. The last time Spain met Austria on clay was in 1984, when Austria won 3-0. World No.24 Anabel Medina Garrigues is 5-5 in Fed Cup matches and won her fifth career Tour singles title at Canberra earlier this year. Domínguez-Lino is making her Fed Cup debut. She recently claimed the Tier III title in Bogotá.
The Austrian squad will be led by world No.53 Sybille Bammer, who will need strong input from No.112 Meusburger and No.334 Paszek to take down the experienced Spaniards.
Germany vs. USA
Venue: Ettenheim, Germany (red clay, outdoors)
German team: Anna-Lena Groenefeld, Julia Schruff, Martina Müller and Sandra Kloesel (Captain: Barbara Rittner)
American team: Jill Craybas, Jamea Jackson, Shenay Perry and Vania King (Captain: Zina Garrison)
Without American stars Lindsay Davenport, Venus and Serena Williams, Meghann Shaughnessy and Lisa Raymond, the United States might be fielding their least experienced Fed Cup team in recent years. Jamea Jackson, Shenay Perry and Vania King are all making their Fed Cup debuts. In her 10th year as a professional, Jill Craybas is playing arguably her best career tennis, on Monday making her Top 40 debut.
Providing the firepower for the Germans is world No.14 Anna-Lena Groenefeld, who claimed her first Tour singles title earlier this year in Acapulco and reached her first Tier I semifinal over the weekend at Charleston. Julia Schruff, Martina Müller and Sandra Kloesel will try to help Groenefeld take down the Americans.
The Americans lead Germany 6-4 in the all-time rivalry, but Germany won the last two meetings in the 1992 semifinals and the 1987 finals. The U.S.A. has 17 Fed Cup titles and dominated the rest of the world between 1976 and 1982 when it won seven straight titles. Germany captured titles in 1987 and 1982.
Belgium vs. Russia
Venue: Liège, Belgium (red clay, indoors)
Belgian team: Kim Clijsters, Justine Henin-Hardenne, Kirsten Flipkens and Caroline Maes (Captain: Carl Maes)
Russian team: Nadia Petrova, Elena Dementieva, Maria Kirilenko and Dinara Safina (Captain: Shamil Tarpischev)
In arguably the most thrilling first round tie, world No.2 Kim Clijsters and No.4 Justine Henin-Hardenne will reunite to help Belgium end the winning run of two-time defending champion Russia. Clijsters and Henin-Hardenne led Belgium to its only Fed Cup title in 2001, defeating Russia in the final. But since then the two have played in only three ties together - the last in 2003. Henin-Hardenne has an 11-1 Fed Cup record (her only loss came in 2000 against American Monica Seles), and Clijsters is 18-2 and undefeated since 2000.
Russia will be without No.3 Maria Sharapova. Nadia Petrova, Elena Dementieva, Maria Kirilenko and Dinara Safina will try to make Russia the first winner of three consecutive titles since Spain in 1993-95. Dementieva won both of her singles and teamed with Safina to win the doubles to beat France last year. By winning Amelia Island and Charleston, Petrova extended her Tour-leading match win tally this season to 28, and is now ranked No.5 in the world. She is also the second player this year to win three titles, tying Mauresmo.
In World Group II, Japan hosts Switzerland; Croatia takes on Argentina; Thailand plays host to the Czech Republic; and Indonesia will play China. All of these nations are playing for promotion into the 2007 World Group I.
все активно болеем за наших девочек. и, возможно, 3 год подряд Россия выйдет в Чемпионы.