FedCup news, scores and discussions

[Annie]

I thought if we had a thread for the Russian team, we might as well get the general one ;D

Hantuchova returns to Fed Cup

Daniela Hantuchova has been nominated to represent 2002 Fed Cup champion Slovak Republic in the Fed Cup by BNP Paribas Europe/Africa Zone Group I event in Plovdiv, Bulgaria.

The World No. 15, who won both of her singles rubbers to help her nation take the title in 2002, will play her first Fed Cup match for three years as the Slovaks attempt to regain the World Group place which they lost last year.

Also due to appear in Plovdiv, is Serbian teen Ana Ivanovic, also currently ranked in the Top 20, who will make her Fed Cup debut. Anna Smashnova is also due to play for Israel for the 15th successive year and could equal and go on to break Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario’s record for the most number of Fed Cup ties played during the week-long event.

Other leading players nominated for the event are rising stars Shahar Peer from Israel, Swede Sofia Arvidsson, Michaella Krajicek of the Netherlands and Finland’s Emma Laine, who have all recorded career-high rankings in or close to the top 50 this year, as well as six other top 100-ranked players.

Indian sensation Sania Mirza and world doubles No.1 Samantha Stosur from Australia head the nominated line-ups for the Asia/Oceania Zone Group I event in Seoul, Korea. Another former doubles No. 1 Rennae Stubbs joins Stosur in an Australian team which hopes to go one step further than last year when it lost in the final to China, which went on to win its World Group II Play-off.

The Americas Zone Group I event will take place at Medellin, Colombia where the hosts will be looking for a strong performance from Top 50 player Catalina Castano, who spearheaded Colombia’s climb from Group II last year. Kristina Brandi, also ranked in the top 100 will appear for last year’s winner Puerto Rico at the same event.

All three Fed Cup Zonal Group I events take place week commencing 17 April with the most successful teams in each region earning a place in the World Group II Play-offs in July, and a chance to win promotion to World Group II in 2007.

[SAFINNO1]

Here are the world group draws

France v Italy Palais des Sports Jean Weille, Nancy, FRA 22 Apr - 23 Apr 2006
Spain v Austria Club Español de Tenis, Valencia, ESP 22 Apr - 23 Apr 2006
Germany v USA TC Ettenheim, Ettenheim, GER 22 Apr - 23 Apr 2006
Belgium v Russia Country Hall du Sart-Tilman, Liege, BEL 22 Apr - 23 Apr

[SAFINNO1]

Official Team nominations

World Group and World Group II team nominationsWorld Nos. 1, 2 and 3, Amelie Mauresmo, Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin-Hardenne, headlline the team nominations for the World Group & World Group II ties to be played 22-23 April.


WORLD GROUP FIRST ROUND

FRANCE v ITALY
Venue: Nancy, France (clay – indoors)

France
Amelie Mauresmo
Nathalie Dechy
Emilie Loit
Virginie Razzano
Captain: Georges Goven

Italy
Francesca Schiavone
Flavia Pennetta
Mara Santangelo
Roberta Vinci
Captain: Corrado Barazzutti


SPAIN v AUSTRIA
Venue: Valencia, Spain (clay – outdoors)

Spain
Anabel Medina Garrigues
Lourdes Dominguez-Lino
Maria Sanchez Lorenzo
Virginia Ruano Pascual
Captain: Miguel Margets

Austria
Sybille Bammer
Yvonne Meusburger
Tamira Paszek
Sandra Klemenschits
Captain: Alfred Tesar

GERMANY v USA
Venue: Ettenheim, Germany (clay – outdoors)

Germany
Anna-Lena Groenefeld
Julia Schruff
Martina Muller
Sandra Kloesel
Captain: Barbara Rittner

USA
Jill Craybas
Jamea Jackson
Shenay Perry
Vania King
Captain: Zina Garrison

For Bel v Russia check the Other fed cup thread

I find it amazing that neither 1 of the williams or Lindsay/ Raymond/Shaugnessy or even Capriati have made themselves available for FED Cup weekend

[Annie]

Nominations have been announced for all teams ;D ;D

www.fedcup.com/news/newsarticle.asp?id=10786

[Annie]

Clijsters opens up against Dementieva

KIm Clijsters begins Belgium's challenge against defending champion Russia with a match against last year's final heroine Elena Dementieva in their Fed Cup by BNP Paribas first round tie in Liege. The full draw is as follows:

Kim Clijsters (BEL) v Elena Dementieva (RUS)
Justine Henin-Hardenne (BEL) v Nadia Petrova (RUS)
Kim Clijsters (BEL) v Nadia Petrova (RUS)
Justine Henin-Hardenne (BEL) v Elena Dementieva (RUS)
Kirsten Flipkens/Caroline Maes (BEL) v Maria KIrilenko/Dinara Safina (RUS)


COME GIRLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WE HAVE TO DO IT THREE TIMES IN A ROW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! DAVAI RUSSIA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[alsl]

Poor elena..facing kimmy and justine..would die if it were me but its for the country so this is the time to be a patriot i suppose!

[alsl]

www.fedcup.com/news/newsarticle.asp?id=10818

scroll down and check out elena's audio.also check out kim and justine's.

[pau]

thanks for all the info alsl and Annie!!

[reese]

score so far:

France - Italy : 1-1

Spain - Austria: 3-0

Germany - USA: 1-3

Russia - Belgium:1-1

[tall_one]

Irresistible Henin-Hardenne takes Belgian fans to Nirvana
There’s probably never been a moment like it in Belgian tennis! The moment Elena Dementieva double-faulted to seal a superb 62 60 victory for Justine Henin-Hardenne the Country Hall arena exploded into a sea of red, yellow and black, and the champagne flowed in every direction. Belgium’s reserve players Caroline Maes and Kirsten Flipkens chased Kim Clijsters round the court, spraying her with bubbly, and the on-court camera people will have to explain to their bosses on Monday why their equipment reeks of champagne.

Although Belgium was Fed Cup champion in 2001, the competition was smaller then and the Belgians won away in Spain. That’s why parading their two greatest-ever players at home against a team with two top-tenners which hadn’t lost in the competition since November 2003 was always going to be a massive spectacle. To win, and to do so in great style, unleashed scenes of celebration probably never witnessed in the Belgian tennis community. And to cap it all, Clijsters and Henin-Hardenne volunteered to play the doubles to reward those fans who stayed on for the dead rubber, even though they lost on two tiebreaks as Maria Kirilenko and Dinara Safina made the final score 3-2.

It wasn’t just that Belgium won the two reverse singles to turn a finely balanced tie into a decisive win – it was the way they did it that was so impressive. Clijsters played well enough against Maria Kirilenko to atone for her defeat to Dementieva on Saturday, but it was Henin-Hardenne’s performance that really took the breath away. Dementieva didn’t play badly, she didn’t give up, her double faults only came in the final game, but she was simply outplayed.

Henin-Hardenne runs riot

Whatever she threw at the French Open champion came back with interest, and the Liège-born Belgian had her home crowd purring with her flowing backhands, her precision forehands and her beautifully disguised dropshots. Dementieva seemed to have got back on track after losing the first two games when she won a marathon fourth to level at 2-2. But that was to be her last game as Henin-Hardenne ran riot.

Clijsters had built the foundations of Sunday’s victory parade with a 61 64 win over the 19-year-old Fed Cup by BNP Paribas debutante Kirilenko, who came in for Nadia Petrova . No reason was given for Petrova’s absence, so it could be that she was just short of gas after lots of recent tennis, capped by Saturday’s three-setter against Henin-Hardenne. With Kirilenko in the best form of her career and up to No. 22 in the rankings, it seemed a smart move.

Kirilenko's nerves

Yet Kirilenko needed a set to get the nerves of playing for her country out of her system. In the first she was almost paralysed with fear, she mistimed most of her backhands, and her stunted movement made her look very sluggish. By contrast, Clijsters was on the rebound from Saturday’s defeat to Dementieva, and was striking the ball so beautifully Kirilenko more than once had to use a left-handed forehand to retrieve shots hit wide to her backhand wing.

Kirilenko played her best tennis in the second set, moving much better and matching Clijsters most of the way, but when it came to the big points, Clijsters had something in reserve. She took over on break point in the fifth game, and after letting the Russian back from 2-5 to 4-5, she played an authoritative game to seal victory in an hour and 10 minutes.

Kirilenko teamed up with Dinara Safina to win the dead doubles rubber against Clijsters and Henin-Hardenne 76 75 to make the final scoreline 3-2 but Russia will still face a play-off in July to preserve its place amongst the elite. The draw for the World Group Play-offs will take place on Tuesday (April 25).

The Belgians will be at home in July’s semi-finals against the USA. Asked whether she could possibly miss it, Henin-Hardenne said: “I don’t think so.We’ll have to look at the calendar, it’s always very hard to predict what’s going to happen, let’s go step-by-step.” That caution is part of her make-up, but after such a rapturous welcome and an ecstatic reaction to their victory, it’ll be hard for both Belgium’s players to resist the call of the nation the week after Wimbledon.

[Annie]

I will post a report tomorrow.... too sad right now

[SAFINNO1]

FED CUP FINAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Belgium 1-1 Italy

R1 - F.SCHIAVONE (ITA) def. K.FLIPKENS (BEL)
6-1 6-3
R2 - J.HENIN-HARDENNE (BEL) def. F.PENNETTA (ITA)
6-4 7-5
R3 - J.HENIN-HARDENNE (BEL) v F.SCHIAVONE (ITA)
R4 - K.FLIPKENS (BEL) v F.PENNETTA (ITA)
R5 - L.BUTKIEWICZ / C.MAES (BEL) v M.SANTANGELO / R.VINCI (ITA)

Henin-Hardenne's heroics delight her fans
Justine Henin-Hardenne played the heroine’s role perfectly as she defeated Italy's Flavia Pennetta 64 75 to bring Belgium level in the 2006 Fed Cup Final by BNP Paribas final in Charleroi.

After Francesca Schiavone had comfortably defeated Kirsten Flipkens 61 63 in the opening rubber, the pressure was on for the world No. 2, playing in front of a noisy home crowd.

Henin-Hardenne struggled to find her range early on and was maybe a little intimidated by the sell-out crowd of over 6,000 while Pennetta brushed aside any rustiness caused by her recent wrist injury by storming to a 3-0 lead.

To her fans’ relief, Henin-Hardenne won the next five games as her powerful groundstrokes began to find their range. Her opponent regrouped, but the Belgian held firm and on set point, hit a forehand volley winner to take the lead.

When Pennetta dropped serve in the opening game of the second set, it looked like the match may rapidly slip away from the Italian but she won four of the next five games, breaking twice and looking particularly impressive on serve.

At 2-5, 0-30, it looked like Pennetta may achieve a third break but Henin-Hardenne dug deep to stay alive. Her opponent got a little tight, producing two double faults in her next service game as the momentum swung back to Belgium, Henin-Hardenne forcing another break to serve out for the match.

In a tense final game, Pennetta forced a break point but it only delayed the inevitable. With most of the crowd already on its feet on match point, Henin-Hardenne set up a winning smash with a fierce serve to deliver a vital point for Belgium.

Afterwards, she admitted that the atmosphere had really helped. “The crowd really helped me to win. Carl (Maes, Belgium’s captain), the team and the crowd all pulled me through. I didn’t play my best tennis but the important thing today was to win.”

Looking ahead to tomorrow, she added, “It will be a difficult day tomorrow. I have to win my second singles first after that I am ready to play the doubles. I haven’t played doubles for a while and have not even had chance to practise (doubles) for a while. But I think I still know the rules !”

Pennetta was disappointed but said, “she is No. 2 and I am No. 20, that’s what happens. She played the important points much better than me. At 5-3 in the second set, I probably began to think too much.”

Tomorrow, Henin-Hardenne will take on Schiavone in the opening match, a rubber that she really has to win. Pennetta will then face Flipkens and the tie will be concluded by the doubles.

JHH wins
Panetta

Moya supporting wifey!

Flipkens
Schiavone victorious

[Annie]

Italy wins the Fed Cup for the first time
It perhaps wasn't the way that Italy would have wanted to win the Fed Cup by BNP Paribas for the first time, but win it they have in a Final that wasn't short on drama. History will record that Italy is the Fed Cup Champion Nation for 2006, and that is all that matters.

For the third year in succession, the Final of the Fed Cup by BNP Paribas went to the doubles rubber, and for the second year in a row the doubles went to a final set. But, for just the second time in the competition's history the destiny of the Fed Cup was decided by injury, as Justine Henin-Hardenne was forced to retire early in the third set due to right knee problems after aggravating a long-standing injury during her win earlier in the day over Francesca Schiavone

That meant that the Italian team of Schiavone and Roberta Vinci defeated Kirsten Flipkens and Henin-Hardenne 36 62 20 ret., giving Italy a 3-2 victory and a first taste of Fed Cup glory.

Schiavone, like the rest of her team and anyone of Italian extraction inside the stadium, was clearly delighted afterwards.

"I love this, I hope that Italian tennis can improve and grow up for this so everyone can enjoy it."

Vinci was just as ecstatic: "We are so happy. This is our first victory, so this is incredible for us. Unbelievable. Unbelievable!"

"I'm very proud of my team and it's an honour for me to be captain of this group," said Corrado Barazzutti afterwards.

" I am very happy, but I am very sorry for Justine Henin-Hardenne, that was not really the way that we wanted to win. But in tennis anything can happen."

"The best team has won, let's be clear about that," said Belgian captain Carl Maes, adding that Italy's greater strength in depth was the crucial factor. With Kim Clijsters set to retire at the end of next year, Maes sees a hard road ahead for his team.


No regrets, says Henin-Hardenne

Maes also explained afterwards that Henin-Hardenne had had to retire due to the muscles around her right knee over-compensating because of the tape she had on for the cartilage problem she had aggravated in the singles.

"I felt something wrong, something very sudden," said Henin-Hardenne afterwards. It's more muscular I think right now but I hope it's not something really serious.

"No regrets. When I walk on the court it's to give 200%. I couldn't do more this weekend, I gave a lot to the team, it wasn't enough."


Final stuck to the script – but it was an unhappy ending

It always looked like this final might go down to the doubles once Clijsters was forced to withdraw before the tie to a wrist injury. That looked a little less certain once Flavia Pennetta's participation in the final was put in doubt due to a wrist injury of her own, and even though she recovered sufficiently to face Justine Henin-Hardenne on the first day of this clash – and gave the Belgian a run for her money – that was to be her last act of the final. Well, apart from leading the fanatical Italian fans in support of her teammates from the sidelines, ably assisted by boyfriend Carlos Moya. Clijsters also appeared to cheer her team on from the bench.

With the tie level at 1-1 overnight, Schiavone defeating Flipkens before Henin-Hardenne edged out a win over Pennetta. Sunday saw a tension-filled match between Henin-Hardenne and Schiavone, which the Belgian again managed to conjure a win from, despite not being at her best.

Nobody knew it at the time but that third rubber contained the decisive moment of the weekend: on the second point, Henin-Hardenne aggravated a cartilage problem in her right knee, that she later admitted to having had for 18 months. She explained that it's not something that will go away, but rather something she has to manage. Still an injury time-out during the match, and some gutsy play to come back from 3-5 in the second set, seemed to have got her over the worst of it.

With Belgium 2-1 up the tie was still progressing as most people predicted, and even when Mara Santangelo, rather than Pennetta took the court to face Flipkens – and promptly dropped the first set in nervous fashion – the tie soon got back to the script. Santangelo came back to win in three sets, although an intriguing sub-plot developed as now Flipkens needed the trainer for a left thigh injury at the start of the third set.

After treatment Flipkens didn't win another game as she tried to keep the points short to conserve energy, but the reason for that became clear when she re-emerged for the doubles half an hour later. With her was Henin-Hardenne, right knee heavily strapped, but Maes obviously decided that going with these two – even if they weren't fully fit – was his best option.


Italy able to call on all four players

Italy on the other hand could field Schiavone alongside doubles specialist Vinci, playing in her first rubber of the weekend. Now each of the four members of the Italian squad had played at one point, whereas Belgium was relying on just two players.

It didn't seem to matter as Belgium took advantage of Vinci's nerves to break her serve and claim the first set. The Italians fought back, and with Vinci growing in confidence, urged on by a pumped-up Schiavone, they levelled the rubber at one set apiece.


Joy for Italy, sadness for Belgium

After Schiavone held to put Italy 1-0 up, Henin-Hardenne came out to serve. The Belgians went 0-40 down, but on the second point of the game Henin-Hardenne had landed awkwardly after serving and jarred that knee. She knew immediately that something was badly wrong, and she limped to the chair to get a medical timeout. The strapping was removed and she got massage from the physio, with the doctor looking on, and although she played two more points – Belgium losing the game to go 0-2 down – the game was up. Literally.

Henin-Hardenne became the first woman to retire in a live Fed Cup Final rubber since Bettina Bunge did so in 1983 whilst trailing Hana Mandlikova 62 30 in the second singles rubber to give Czechoslovakia, as it was then known, victory as it already led 1-0. (Prior to 1995, the Fed Cup was decided in a best-of-three format.)

It was a desperately sad way to end a tie that, from before it even started, had an unwanted and unavoidable association with injuries.

[SAFINNO1]

This was heart breaking to watch on Henin Hardenne's behalf - to be honest she was the one that was gonna win the Fed Cup.
Also Kim Clijsters - she has 1 more year to acheive her dream and win the Fed Cup can she do it!

Francesca Schiavone and Flavia Pennetta (ITA) celebrate Italian Fed Cup victory
Justine Henin-Hardenne with Belgian Captain Carl Maes
Captain Corrado Barazzutti celebrates first Fed Cup by BNP Paribas title for Italy
Losing doubles pair
Kirsten Flipkens and Justine Henin-Hardenne (BEL) congratulate Francesca Schiavone and Roberta Vinci (ITA)
Kim Clijsters (BEL) congratulates Italian team on 2006 Fed Cup by BNP Paribas victory

The Champions: Italy wins 2006 Fed Cup by BNP Paribas

[Annie]

Well done girlies ;D ;D ;D ;D 5-0 Semis against USA

Russia goes through to semis

A delighted Svetlana Kuznetsova punched the air after beating Anabel Medina Garrigues 63 46 60 to give Russia an unassailable lead over Spain in Moscow and put her side into the Fed Cup by BNP Paribas semifinals.


Strong performance from Medina Garrigues

Playing the all-star Russian side in front of a partisan Russian crowd was always going to be a difficult proposition but Medina Garrigues typified the Spanish effort with a doughty performance in the third rubber of the tie, at least until she became hampered by a back injury mid-way through the third set. Even if Medina Garrigues had been fully fit in the closing stages, she would still have had a stiff task on her hands. Kuznetsova is a former US Open champion and was a finalist at Roland Garros last year, and ultimately she had too much firepower for the Spaniard, who is ranked 24 places below the world No.5.

Much of the hard work for Russia had been done by Kuznetsova and teammate Nadia Petrova on day one of the tie, when both women scored straight-set wins. Petrova beat Medina Garrigues in the opening match, while Kuznetsova took care of Lourdes Dominguez-Lino, thus giving the home side the perfect platform for victory over the visitors.


No sign of nerves for Kuznetsova

Kuznetsova revealed on Saturday that she suffered from nerves during her first match and that the burden of playing for her country and her teammates had weighed heavily on her shoulders. If Kuznetsova felt similarly nervous against Medina Garrigues, it did not show early on. She broke in the sixth game of the match with the aid of some fearsome returns of serve, ensuring that she was ahead in less than 20 minutes. After less than half an hour Kuznetsova was a set to the good and, despite Medina Garrigues’s hustling and hard work, the Barcelona-based Russian seemed certain to inflict a merciless defeat on the country she regards as a second home.

However, team competitions are seldom as predictable as that, nor was Medina Garrigues inclined to make life too easy for the home side. Her well-crafted clay court game carved out an opportunity to break in Kuznetsova’s first service game of the second set, which the Spaniard duly took to give herself a lead which she held onto for the rest of the set. She served for the set at 53, whereupon Kuznetsova opted for a strategy off all-out attack, breaking the Medina Garrigues serve to 15 and unleashing a barrage of cheers, applause and horns from the predominantly Russian crowd in the Luzhniki Arena. Yet Medina Garrigues still did not capitulate, and when she managed to eke out a set-point at 30-40 when Kuznetsova served at 4-5 down, the Spaniard unleashed a return of serve so venomous that it hurried Kuznetsova into a wild backhand, sprayed wide of the tramlines.

Afterwards, Kuznetsova said she had begun to feel poorly in the second set, though was at a loss to explain why. “I am happy overall but I’m not happy with the second set. I felt weird and my head started going around and around,” she said.


Medina Garrigues injury

After some encouraging words from her captain Shamil Tarpischev, Kuznetsova regained her composure and broke Medina Garrigues in the opening game of the decider. The Spaniard was soon 0-3 down and appeared to be increasingly troubled by her injury. She required a long injury time-out for treatment before the fourth game. It did little good and her movement was never quite the same as it had been in the first two sets. It proved to be an anti-climatic end to a hitherto compelling encounter and after an hour and 42 minutes, Kuznetsova wrapped up the match and the tie for Russia.

Russia's dominance continued when Anna Chakvetadze overcame a first set loss to defeat Nuria Llagostera-Vives 36 76(5 62 in the dead fourth rubber, and Nadia Petrova partnered Elena Vesnina to a 61 46 62 victory over Lourdes Dominguez-Lino and Laura Pous-Tio to complete the whitewash. While the victors can look forward to a potential semifinal meeting with the USA – and the exciting prospect of Maria Sharapova making her Fed Cup debut against great rival Serena Williams and her sister Venus – Spain will now have to win a Play-off in July to retain its World Group status and avoid dropping down to World Group II.