2003 Australian Open
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2019 FED CUP BY BNP PARIBAS WORLD GROUP FIRST ROUND WORLD GROUP II FIRST ROUND 9-10 February – TIE NOTES WORLD GROUP FIRST ROUND Czech Republic (s) (c) v Romania – Ostravar Arena, Ostrava, CZE – (hard, indoors) Belgium (c) v France (s) – Country Hall du Sart-Tilman, Liège, BEL – (hard, indoors) Germany (c) v Belarus (s) – Volkswagen Halle, Braunschweig, GER – (hard, indoors) USA (s) (c) v Australia – US Cellular Arena, Asheville, NC, USA – (hard, indoors) WORLD GROUP II FIRST ROUND Switzerland (s) (c)* v Italy – Swiss Tennis Arena, Biel, SUI – (hard, indoors) Latvia (c)* v Slovakia (s) – Arena Riga, Riga, LAT – (hard, indoors) Japan (s) (c) v Spain – Sogo Gymnastic Hall, Kita-kyushu, JPN – (hard, indoors) Netherlands (s) (c)* v Canada – Maaspoort Sports & Events, ’s-Hertogenbosch, NED – (clay, indoors) (s) = seed (c) = choice of ground * = choice of ground was decided by lot CHOICE OF GROUND – WORLD GROUP SEMIFINALS The winners of this weekend’s World Group first round ties advance to the semifinals on 20-21 April. Below is the choice of ground for all potential semifinal match-ups. The venue details are due to be submitted to the ITF by 25 February. BELGIUM FRANCE CZECH REPUBLIC CZE CZE ROMANIA BEL FRA* USA AUSTRALIA GERMANY GER AUS BELARUS USA AUS* * choice of ground decided by lot WORLD GROUP & WORLD GROUP II PLAY-OFFS The World Group play-offs and World Group II play-offs will also take place on 20-21 April. The draw for the World Group play-offs and World Group II play-offs will be held at the ITF offices in London on Tuesday 12 February. The seeds will be based on the new Fed Cup Nations ranking of 11 February. Venue details for play-off ties are due to be submitted to the ITF by 5 March. 2019 Fed Cup by BNP Paribas World Group/World Group II First Round Tie Notes 1 PAST CHAMPIONS In total, 11 nations have won the Fed Cup. • USA 18 • Czech Republic (5 as Czechoslovakia) 11 • Australia 7 • Spain 5 • Italy, Russia 4 • France, Germany 2 • Belgium, Slovakia, South Africa 1 COMEBACKS FROM 0-2 DOWN There have been just 7 comebacks from 0-2 down since the best of five format was adopted in Fed Cup in 1995. France recorded the most recent 0-2 comeback by defeating Italy 3-2 in the 2015 World Group first round. TOP TIEBREAKS Since the introduction of the tiebreak in Fed Cup, there have never been more than 5 tiebreaks in a ‘best of five rubber’ tie. This has happened twice before: Italy d. Australia 4-1, 2011 World Group first round/Czech Republic d. Australia 4-0, 2013 World Group first round. PARTICIPATING NATIONS 101 nations have entered the 2019 Fed Cup by BNP Paribas. FED CUP NATIONS RANKING The ITF Fed Cup Nations Ranking was launched at the end of 2002. It is published following every tie weekend and measures success over the preceding 4-year period, with recent performances weighted more heavily. It is the sole criteria for seeding at all levels of Fed Cup competition. Latest Fed Cup Nations Ranking (12 November 2018) 1 Czech Republic 11 Russia 2 USA 12 Slovakia 3 Belarus 13 Japan 4 France 14 Spain 5 Germany 15 Latvia 6 Belgium 16 Italy 7 Switzerland 17 Canada 8 Romania 18 Great Britain 9 Australia 19 Paraguay 10 Netherlands 20 Ukraine 2019 Fed Cup by BNP Paribas World Group/World Group II First Round Tie Notes 2 FED CUP RECORDS* World Group (Since 1995) Fed Cup Most Games in a Tie 162: See World Group (Best of Five format) France d. Japan 4-1, 1997 World Group I first round Longest recorded 10 hours, 26 minutes: 12 hours, 27 minutes: Spain d. Belgium 3-2, 2004 WG quarterfinal playing-time (tie) France d. Slovakia 3-2, 2009 WG play-off Italy d. Australia 4-1, 2011 WG first round 4 hours, 0 minutes: Longest singles rubber Richel Hogenkamp (NED) d. Svetlana See World Group Kuznetsova (RUS) 76(4) 57 10-8, 2016 World Group first round 2 hours, 28 minutes: Ekaterina Makarova/Elena Vesnina (RUS) d. Dominika Cibulkova/Daniela Hantuchova (SVK) 3 hours, 35 minutes: Longest doubles rubber 46 63 61, 2013 World Group semifinal Tzipi Obziler/Hila Rosen (ISR) d. Anne Kremer/Cludine Schaul (LUX) 36 76 108, Bojana Jovanovski/Aleksandra Krunic (SRB) d. 2001 Europe/Africa Group I Yanina Wickmayer/Alison Van Uytvanck (BEL) 76(2) 46 61, 2012 World Group first round 12-10: 21-19: Longest tiebreak Bethanie Mattek-Sands (USA) d. Kim Clijsters Manisha Malhotra/Sania Mirza (IND) d. (BEL), 67(10) 62 61, 2011 World Group first Vlada Ekshibarova/Ivanna Israilova (UZB), round 76(19) 61, 2004 Asia/Oceania Group I *for further details see the Statistics page on the official Fed Cup website: http://www.fedcup.com/en/statistics/general-records.aspx 2019 Fed Cup by BNP Paribas World Group/World Group II First Round Tie Notes 3 Czech Republic v Romania – Ostravar Arena, Ostrava, CZE – (hard, indoors) Head-to-head: Czech Republic leads 2-0 A 3rd meeting for the 2 teams and their first in Czech Republic. The Czechs won on the nations first meeting in 1980 – played in Berlin – as well as at this stage of the competition in 2016, when they recorded a 3-2 victory in Cluj-Napoca with Karolina Pliskova/Barbora Strycova defeating Andreea Mitu/Raluca Olaru in the decisive doubles rubber. CZECH REPUBLIC v ROMANIA 1 Current FC Nations Ranking 8 Champion 11 times* 5 quarterfinals, Best Result (most recent 2018) WG first round 2016, 19 1963 First year played 1973 49 Years played (inc 2019) 39 143 Ties played 133 106-37 Ties Win-Loss 78-55 0 Comebacks from 0-2 down 0 (*5 times as Czechoslovakia) • 2018 champion CZECH REPUBLIC is bidding to reach the semifinals for the 11th consecutive year. • Last year, Czech Republic won its 11th Fed Cup title after defeating Switzerland 3-1 in Prague and Germany 4-1 in Stuttgart in the opening 2 rounds and USA 3-0 in the Fed Cup Final in Prague, with Katerina Siniakova defeating Sofia Kenin to win the decisive 3rd point. • Czech Republic is in 2nd place on the list for most Fed Cup titles won, behind USA. As Czechoslovakia, the team won the title in 1975, 1983-85 and 1988. As Czech Republic, the team has won the title in 6 of the last 8 years – in 2011-12, 2014-16 and last year. • Czech Republic has won 13 of its last 14 ties. Its only defeat in that time came against USA in the 2017 World Group semifinals in Florida. • Czech Republic is bidding to extend its 18-tie winning streak on hard courts. It has not lost a hard court tie since falling to USA 3-2 in the 2009 World Group semifinals in Brno. • Czech Republic is bidding to extend its 11-tie winning streak at home. It has not lost a home tie since falling to USA 3-2 in the 2009 World Group semifinals in Brno. • Helena Sukova is Czech Republic’s most successful Fed Cup player with the most total wins (57), most singles wins (45), most ties played (54) and joint-most years played, alongside Lucie Safarova (13). • Czech Republic is ranked at No. 1 on the Fed Cup Nations Ranking. It has held the No. 1 ranking since April 2014, having first attained the top position in April 2012. • If Czech Republic wins this weekend, it will host either Belgium or France in the semifinals. • Karolina Pliskova is contesting her 8th Fed Cup tie this weekend. She has a 10-4 win-loss record in Fed Cup singles and a 14-4 win-loss record in the competition overall. She has won a decisive doubles rubber on 4 occasions – most recently defeating Caroline Garcia/Kristina Mladenovic alongside Barbora Strycova in the Czech Republic’s 2016 Final victory against France. • Katerina Siniakova won both rubbers she contested in the 2018 Final, including winning the decisive 3rd point by defeating USA’s Sofia Kenin in the 3rd rubber. She has a 3-1 win-loss record in Fed Cup singles rubbers and a 4-3 win-loss record in the competition overall. • Marketa Vondrousova is making her 2nd Fed Cup appearance this weekend. Her only previous appearance in the competition came in Czech Republic’s defeat to USA in the 2017 World Group semifinals, where she won one of the 2 singles rubbers she contested. 2019 Fed Cup by BNP Paribas World Group/World Group II First Round Tie Notes 4 • Barbora Krejcikova could make her Fed Cup debut this weekend. She was nominated for the first time for the 2018 Final but did not play. • Captain Petr Pala is the most successful Fed Cup captain of all-time in terms of titles won – Pala has captained 6 winning teams. • ROMANIA is bidding to reach the semifinals for the first time and record its best Fed Cup result. • Last year, Romania defeated Canada 3-1 in the World Group II first round in Cluj-Napoca and Switzerland 3-1 in the World Group play-offs, also in Cluj-Napoca, to return to the World Group for the first time since 2016. • Romania is bidding to win 4 consecutive best-of-5-rubber ties for the first time. By winning its 3 most- recent ties, it has equalled its longest winning streak in best-of-5-rubber ties, having also achieved the feat in 2014-15, when it defeated Serbia in the 2014 World Group II play-offs, Spain in the 2015 World Group II first round and Canada in the 2015 World Group play-offs.