Czech Republic and Serbian tennis players pose with the trophy during the draw for the Fed Cup final in Prague yesterday. Czech Republic will face Serbia in the Fed Cup final tennis match today. Ana Ivanovic and Lucie Safarova will open the singles event.
PRAGUE: Lucie Safarova of holders Czech Republic will take on Serbia’s Ana Ivanovic in the first singles rubber of the Fed Cup final today, after yesterday’s draw.
Safarova, the world number 17 and Czech number two, will face world number 12 Ivanovic, who is Serbia’s number one, in Prague’s O2 Arena from 1230 GMT today.
“I definitely feel a little bit of pressure, but it’s like that before every match you play,” Ivanovic, a former world number one, told reporters.
“Obviously we expect a very tough match tomorrow (today)so it’s going to be important to start well... to create a little more pressure” on the rivals, she added.
But Ivanovic face a tough challenge as the left-handed Safarova has beaten her in their last three encounters, the most recent being this year in Sydney.
“Statistically, I’m on top,” said Safarova.
“She is an excellent player but I’ll do my best,” she added, naming an outstanding serve and forehand and fast play among Ivanovic’s virtues.
“But I can play fast too and my left-handedness is a pro, I can attack on her backhand side,” she underlined.
In the second rubber today, Czech number one Petra Kvitova, who is recovering from a cold that forced her to pull out of the WTA Championship last week, will face Serbia’s number two Jelena Jankovic.
“I have some breathing problems but that’s what happens when you have a cold,” said Kvitova, the world number eight.
“I feel great both about my play and physically too,” she added after training for over an hour on Thursday.
The crowd of almost 14,000 people in the arena might make all the difference.
“We’re playing at home, I’m playing for the team and that will give me strength,” said Kvitova.
She added Jankovic, a former world number one who is now 22nd in the WTA rankings, would return lots of balls owing to her physical style.
“She was a world number one, so I have to reckon with it. She hasn’t done miracles lately, but it’s different in Fed Cup ties,” Kvitova said.
“She’s determined and she will fight for Serbia,” added Kvitova.
Tomorrow, Kvitova will face Ivanovic, before Safarova plays Jankovic in the final singles tie.
The Czech Republic’s Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka are then due to face Serbia’s Bojana Jovanovic and Aleksandra Krunic in the closing doubles rubber.
But the doubles teams may change, with Serbia potentially deciding to use a stronger duo against the Czechs, who are 3rd and 4th in the doubles rankings after reaching the finals at Wimbledon, the US Open, the WTA Championship and the London Olympics. AFP
