U.S. Fed Cup Team to Play Australia Down Under in April
The U.S. Fed Cup Team will travel to Australia for the 2016 Fed Cup by BNP Paribas World Group Playoffs, April 16-17 at a site to be determined. The International Tennis Federation (ITF) announced the draw for the 2016 World Group Playoffs. Australia is seeded eighth, while the United States was unseeded. The seeds were based on the new ITF Fed Cup Nations Ranking of Feb. 8. The U.S. advanced to the Playoffs after winning its World Group II First Round tie this past weekend by defeating Poland, 4-0, at the Holua Tennis Center at the Holua Resort at Mauna Loa Village in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.
Australia will determine the location and playing surface for the match, pending ITF approval. The winner advances to the World Group in 2017, while the losing nation will compete in World Group II next year.
The United States has faced Australia 13 times, holding an 8-5 overall record over the country. The two countries last met in 1985, in a World Group–Semifinal played in Nagoya, Japan, where the U.S. won, 2-1. The U.S. and Australia have met a total of 10 times for the Fed Cup title, where the Americans hold a 7-3 advantage. The two nations also competed in the inaugural Fed Cup event in 1963, with the U.S. winning their first of 17 Fed Cup titles.
The United States leads all nations with 17 Fed Cup titles, the last coming in 2000. The U.S. is 38-6 all-time in Fed Cup ties played at home and holds an overall 145-36 record. Fed Cup by BNP Paribas is the World Cup of Tennis. It is the largest annual international team competition in women’s sport, with 102 nations taking part in 2016.
