U.S. captain Mary Joe Fernandez has named her team for the upcoming Fed Cup World Group Playoff against Germany. Bethanie Mattek-Sands, Melanie Oudin and Liezel Huber will be joined by top-100 newcomer Christina McHale in representing the U.S. against Germany in Stuttgart, April 16-17. Mattek-Sands, Oudin and Huber led the U.S. to consecutive Fed Cup Finals the past two seasons, while McHale made her only Fed Cup appearance in the first round last year against France.
Venus Williams has committed to attend the tie and support her compatriots, though she’s not expected to play for the U.S. due to injury.
The best-of-five series begins on Sat., April 16, with two singles matches and is followed by two reverse singles matches and the doubles match on Sun., April 17. The Tennis Channel will present daily coverage beginning at 1 p.m. ET on Saturday.
“After a tough outing on the road at Belgium, I know this team is very eager to return to the court against Germany,” said Fernandez. “The Germans are a strong young team made up of a very talented group of players (most likely Andre Petkovic, Julia Goerges, Angelique Kerber and Kristina Barrios). Playing on foreign soil is always a difficult task, but our team will be ready to play hard and try to ensure that we can compete for the Fed Cup title once again next year.”
Last year, the 26-year-old Mattek-Sands became the first player in U.S. Fed Cup history to win two consecutive live matches on the final day of competition to help the U.S. come from a 2-1 deficit to beat Russia in the semis. Oudin, 19, earned the U.S. team’s only point in the ‘10 final when she beat Francesca Schiavone in straight sets. Huber, 34, has won six of her seven career Fed Cup matches, including tie-clinching semifinal matches in both ‘09 and ‘10 with Mattek-Sands.
McHale, 18, returns to the team for the first time since making her debut in the ‘10 World Group first round against France. Last month, she defeated Svetlana Kuznetsova en route to the third round in Indian Wells, Calif., and she’s currently ranked a career-high No. 97.
The U.S. is 8-4 all-time against Germany in Fed Cup competition, which includes a 6-3 record against West Germany. The U.S. defeated Germany 4-1 in the last meeting between the two countries in the ‘08 World Group quarterfinal in La Jolla, Calif., as Ashley Harkleroad and Lindsay Davenport combined to win three of four singles matches to clinch the tie before Davenport and Lisa Raymond won the doubles match.
The U.S. has only competed in the World Group Playoffs on two occasions — both at home — most recently in ‘02.
