United States Vs. Italy Fed Cup by BNP Paribas 2014 World Group Quarterfinal Public Auditorium Cleveland, Ohio * February 8-9
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United States vs. Italy Fed Cup by BNP Paribas 2014 World Group Quarterfinal Public Auditorium Cleveland, Ohio * February 8-9 Below are preview notes for Day 1 of the U.S. vs. Italy Fed Cup tie. For more information, contact: Fed Cup Media Center: 216-298-4164 or 4165 Amanda Korba, [email protected] Lindsey Gay, [email protected] ORDER OF PLAY The order of play for this weekend's U.S. vs. Italy Fed Cup by BNP Paribas Quarterfinal tie was determined at Friday's draw ceremony, hosted at the Cleveland Marriott Downtown at Key Center Ballroom. The opening day of play in the best-of-five match series features each country's No. 1 singles player against the No. 2 player from the opposing country. The order of play for this weekend is as follows: DAY/LOCAL TIME MATCH PAIRING Saturday, 1:00 p.m. Singles A: Karin Knapp (ITA) vs. Christina McHale (USA) Singles B: Madison Keys (USA) vs. Camila Giorgi (ITA) Sunday, 12:00 p.m. Singles C: Madison Keys (USA) vs. Karin Knapp (ITA) Singles D: Christina McHale (USA) vs. Camila Giorgi (ITA) Doubles: Lauren Davis/Alison Riske (USA) vs. Nastassja Burnett/Alice Matteucci (ITA) DAY 1 PREVIEW NOTES The United States will face reigning Fed Cup champion Italy in the Fed Cup by BNP Paribas World Group Quarterfinal on an indoor hard court at the Public Auditorium in Cleveland. The United States brings a young Fed Cup team to Cleveland, which includes Cleveland native Lauren Davis, 20; Madison Keys, 18; and Alison Riske, 23, all of whom are making their Fed Cup debuts. The team also includes 21-year- old Christina McHale, who has won her last four Fed Cup singles matches. All four women are ranked in the Top 60 in the world and have advanced to the third round or better at a Grand Slam event. Top Americans Serena Williams (back) and Sloane Stephens (wrist) will not compete due to injury. In Saturday’s first match of the day, Christina McHale, the only player who has previously been named to the U.S. Fed Cup Team, will face off against Italy’s top player Karin Knapp. Ranked No. 62 in the world, McHale competed for the U.S. Fed Cup team four times between 2010 and 2012. She holds a 4-3 record (all in singles) in Fed Cup and currently holds a four-match winning streak after winning all of her matches in 2012. McHale peaked at No. 24 in the world in August 2012 and competed in the 2012 Olympic Games in London. Knapp is ranked No. 40 in the world and has played in two Fed Cup ties for Italy, one in 2008 and one in 2013. She lost her only singles match in 2008. Knapp has competed in all four Grand Slam events, reaching the fourth round of Wimbledon in 2013 for her career-best result. McHale and Knapp have played each other one time on the WTA Tour, with McHale winning in Rome in 2013 on clay, 7-5, 6-2. The second singles match will feature Madison Keys and Camila Giorgi, who are both making their Fed Cup debuts. Keys, who is ranked No. 37 in the world, will be the 70th player to represent the United States in Fed Cup competition. She first broke into the Top 40 in the world in 2013 after reaching the third round of the Australian Open and Wimbledon. In 2009, she became the youngest player at 14 years and 48 days to win a WTA match since Martina Hingis in 1994. Giorgi is ranked No. 84 in the world and gained national attention at the 2013 US Open, where she advanced to the fourth round and upset former US Open finalist Caroline Wozniacki. Keys and Giorgi have played each other one time at a USTA Pro Circuit event in New Braunfels, Texas, in 2012 on a hard court with Keys winning, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4. This match marks the 13th matchup between the U.S. and Italy in Fed Cup competition. Italy won the last three meetings, but the U.S. leads the overall series, 9-3. The U.S. last faced Italy in the 2013 World Group Quarterfinal, losing, 3-2, in Rimini, Italy, in a fifth-and-decisive doubles rubber. The U.S. also played Italy in consecutive Fed Cup World Group finals in 2009 and 2010, both won by the Italians. The U.S. last won against Italy in the 2003 World Group Quarterfinal in Washington, D.C. The winner of this tie advances to face either Spain or the Czech Republic in the semifinals, April 19-20. Ohio will be hosting Fed Cup for the first time, becoming the 15th state to host a Fed Cup tie. The U.S. is 37-4 all-time in Fed Cup ties played at home and 41-8 when competing on hard courts. This is the sixth year as captain of the U.S. squad for Mary Joe Fernandez, who resides in Cleveland. Fernandez led the U.S. to consecutive Fed Cup finals appearances 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 1986-87. Fernandez holds a 7-5 record 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. Fed Cup is the world’s largest annual international women's team competition (96 countries have entered for 2014). The U.S. and Italy are among the eight nations eligible to win the 2014 title as part of the elite Fed Cup World Group. The U.S. leads all nations with 17 Fed Cup titles, the last coming in 2000, and holds an overall 143-33 record. WHERE TO WATCH Tennis Channel will present live daily coverage beginning at 1:00 p.m. ET on Saturday and 12:00 p.m. ET on Sunday. FED CUP TEAM COMPARISON: UNITED STATES VS. ITALY UNITED STATES FED CUP COMPARISON ITALY 1963 First year played 1963 50 Years played 51 176 (143-33) Ties played 125 (71-54) 17-time champion Best Finish Four-time champion (17-11 in finals) (2006, 2009, 2010, 2013) INDIVIDUAL PLAYER RESULTS* * All records as of Monday, February 3 UNITED STATES SINGLES RECORD Player 2013 Career TITLES Best finish at the US Open Madison Keys 34-22 99-58 0 Second round in 2011 Alison Riske 47-27 208-143 0 Fourth round in 2013 Lauren Davis 27-23 121-63 0 First round in 2011 and 2013 Christina McHale 17-24 173-136 0 Third round in 2011 and 2013 DOUBLES RECORD TITLES Madison Keys 0-3 8-11 0 Second round in 2012 Alison Riske 4-11 44-58 0 Second round in 2012 Lauren Davis 2-5 9-15 0 First round in 2011 and 2013 Christina McHale 8-12 43-43 0 First round four times ITALY SINGLES RECORD Player 2013 Career TITLES Best finish at the US Open Karin Knapp 36-21 316-209 0 Third round in 2013 Camila Giorgi 17-14 190-128 0 Fourth round in 2013 Nastassja Burnett 23-24 165-146 0 First round in 2012 Alice Matteucci 15-8 18-12 0 Has not competed DOUBLES RECORD TITLES Karin Knapp 4-5 59-64 0 First round in 2007, 2008 and 2013 Camila Giorgi 0-1 0-2 0 Has not competed Nastassja Burnett 1-3 10-29 0 Has not competed Alice Matteucci 14-5 20-8 0 Has not competed RANKINGS*/FED CUP CAREER COMPARISONS * Rankings as of Monday, February 3 U.S. FED CUP TEAM Singles Doubles Ties Singles Doubles Overall Player Ranking Ranking Played Record Record Record Madison Keys No. 37 No. 253 0 --- --- --- Alison Riske No. 46 No. 153 0 --- --- --- Lauren Davis No. 59 No. 311 0 --- --- --- Christina McHale No. 62 No. 126 4 4-3 --- 4-3 ITALY FED CUP TEAM Singles Doubles Ties Singles Doubles Overall Player Ranking Ranking Played Record Record Record Karin Knapp No. 40 No. 269 2 0-1 1-1 1-2 Camila Giorgi No. 84 --- 0 --- --- --- Nastassja Burnett No. 161 No. 950 0 --- --- --- Alice Matteucci No. 704 No. 522 0 --- --- --- FED CUP HEAD-TO-HEAD UNITED STATES vs. ITALY UNITED STATES LEADS THE SERIES 9-3: This will mark the 13th matchup between the U.S. and Italy in Fed Cup competition. The two countries last met in 2013, also in the World Group Quarterfinal in Rimini, Italy, where the match came down to the fifth-and-decisive doubles rubber (the Italians won the doubles rubber to clinch the tie). The two countries also met in the 2010 Fed Cup final in San Diego and in the 2009 final in Reggio Calabria, Italy, both won by the Italians. The U.S., however, leads the overall series, 9-3. The U.S. last won against Italy in the 2003 World Group quarterfinal in Washington D.C. The U.S. is 1-2 against Italy on hard courts. YEAR SCORE ROUND LOCATION SURFACE 2014 TBD World Group Quarterfinal Cleveland, Ohio Indoor-Hard 2013 ITA, 3-2 World Group Quarterfinal Rimini, Italy Indoor-Hard 2010 ITA, 3-1 World Group Final San Diego, Calif. Indoor-Hard 2009 ITA, 4-1 World Group Final Reggio Calabria, Italy Outdoor-Clay 2003 USA, 5-0 World Group Quarterfinal Washington, D.C. Outdoor-Hard 1999 USA, 4-1 World Group Semifinal Ancona, Italy Outdoor-Clay 1986 USA, 2-1 World Group Quarterfinal Prague, Czechoslovakia Outdoor-Clay 1984 USA, 2-1 World Group Quarterfinal Sao Paulo, Brazil Outdoor-Clay 1973 USA, 3-0 World Group First Round Bad Homburg, West Germany Outdoor-Clay 1971 USA, 3-0 World Group First Round Perth, Australia Outdoor-Grass 1969 USA, 3-0 World Group Quarterfinal Athens, Greece Outdoor-Clay 1965 USA, 3-0 World Group Quarterfinal Melbourne, Australia Outdoor-Grass 1963 USA, 3-0 World Group First Round London, Great Britain Outdoor-Grass DAY 1 HEAD-TO-HEAD MATCHUPS *rankings and records as of Monday, February 3 SINGLES A: CHRISTINA MCHALE (USA) vs.