Venus and Serena Lead Team USA Into Fed Cup Matchup With Argentina
The United States is set to face Argentina on the road in the Fed Cup by BNP Paribas World Group II First Round on an outdoor red clay court at the Pilara Tennis Club in Buenos Aires, Feb. 7-8.
U.S. Fed Cup Captain Mary Joe Fernandez has a strong team heading to Argentina, with world number one and 19-time Grand Slam singles champion Serena Williams and world number 11 and seven-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams leading the team. The U.S. Fed Cup team also includes world number 32 Coco Vandeweghe and world number 96 Taylor Townsend.
Vandeweghe and Townsend were added to replace 2015 Australian Open semifinalist Madison Keys and world number 29 Varvara Lepchenko on the U.S. roster. Keys suffered a leg injury in Australia and is unable compete, while Lepchenko suffered from an illness in Australia and is still recovering. Serena holds a perfect 10-0 singles record in Fed Cup play, while Venus holds a 15-2 singles record. Vandeweghe made her only appearance on the U.S. Fed Cup Team in the 2010 World Group Final against Italy in San Diego, while Townsend is making her Fed Cup debut.
Argentina Fed Cup Captain Maria-Jose Gaidano named world number 121 Paula Ormaechea, number 197 Maria Irigoyen, number 386 Nadia Podoroska and number 546 Tatiana Bua to the Argentina team.
The U.S. has never played a Fed Cup tie in Argentina, but has played them on home and neutral ground. This will mark the fifth matchup between the U.S. and Argentina in Fed Cup competition, where the U.S. holds a 3-1 record over Argentina. The U.S. last faced Argentina in the 2009 World Group Quarterfinal in Surprise, Ariz., where the U.S. won, 3-2, in the fifth-and-decisive doubles rubber won by Julie Ditty & Liezel Huber. The United States’ only loss to Argentina came in 1993 in the World Group Quarterfinal in Germany. The two nations also faced each other on neutral ground in 1985 (Japan) and in 1964 (Philadelphia).
The winner of this tie advances to the World Group Playoff, held April 18-19, to compete for a spot in the 2016 World Group. The losing nation will play in the World Group II Playoff in April to remain in World Group II in 2016. The U.S. will compete in World Group II in 2015 for just the second time since the World Group format was instituted in 1995 (the U.S. competed in the World Group II in 2012).
The United States Fed Cup team will be competing in its first away tie since the 2013 World Group First Round in February 2013 in Rimini, Italy, after playing three consecutive home ties. The U.S. is 8-11 in away ties since the World Group format was in instituted in 1995 and holds an overall 143-35 record.
This marks the seventh year for Mary Joe Fernandez as captain of the U.S. squad. Fernandez led the U.S. to consecutive Fed Cup finals in her first two years as captain (2009 and 2010). She was the first U.S. captain to accomplish that feat since Marty Riessen in 1986-1987. Fernandez is 7-7 as U.S. Fed Cup captain and holds the third-longest tenure in U.S. Fed Cup history, behind Billie Jean King and Riessen, both of whom served as U.S. Fed Cup Captain for nine years.
The first-round showdown begins Saturday, Feb. 7, with two singles matches featuring each country’s number one player against the other country’s number two player. Sunday’s schedule features two “reverse singles” matches, when the number one players square off and the number two players meet, followed by a doubles match. Play on Saturday and Sunday begins at 11:00 a.m. local time (9:00 a.m. ET). A revised schedule for Sunday may take place if a team clinches in the third or fourth match. Each match is best-of-three-sets.
Tennis Channel will present live daily coverage on Saturday and Sunday, starting at 9:00 a.m. ET.
Both captains submitted an initial four-woman roster 10 days prior to play but can change two of the four players originally nominated up to one hour before Friday’s draw ceremony, when they are required to submit their official lineups.
