Davis Cup Play Kicks Off Friday

At the onset of 2005, few would have predicted Andre Agassi ending his five-year moratorium on the Davis Cup, while luminaries such as world No. 1 Roger Federer, Tim Henman and Carlos Moya opted out of the opening round (or all together) to concentrate on winning tour events.

The Davis Cup World Group features the elite 16 tennis nations in the world, with this weekend's eight first-round matches ranging from the blowouts (ex: the Federer-less Switzerland vs. Netherlands) to thrillers such as Sweden at France and Croatia at the U.S.

Here are Friday's singles openers, to be followed by the doubles on Saturday and the reverse singles Sunday:

Spain at Slovak Republic
Surface: Hard indoors

Feliciano Lopez (ESP) vs. Karol Beck (SVK)
Fernando Verdasco (ESP) vs. Dominik Hrbaty (SVK)

Spanish captain Jordi Arrese saves Rafael "The Prodigy" Nadal for the Saturday doubles, with "fast court specialists" Feliciano "F-Lo" Lopez and Fernando "Hot Sauce" Verdasco in for the singles. "I came here two days ago and I haven't adapted to the surface yet," said Nadal, who will pair with Albert Costa in the doubles. "But I am fine with the captain's decision and I have absolutely no doubts in the strengths of Feliciano and Fernando."

Netherlands at Switzerland
Surface: Hard indoors

Sjeng Schalken (NED) vs. Marco Chiudinelli (SUI)
Peter Wessels (NED) vs. Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI)

"If anyone has any queries about how to play a Dutch opponent, they can always ring me. I'm very willing to help," said Federer, who is bailing on the first round of the Davis Cup in protest of Switzerland's poor player development, having to carry the load himself for the last couple years. "The Swiss now have to work -- I hope they can win. But it would be quite extraordinary to win without me, It's always been up to me. The Davis Cup should be an interesting week for Swiss tennis and the future." If losing is interesting, it's going to be very interesting for the Swiss.

Austria at Australia (Australia leads 2-0)
Surface: Grass

Lleyton Hewitt (AUS) d. Alexander Peya (AUT) 6-2, 6-3, 6-4
Wayne Arthurs (AUS) d. Jurgen Melzer (AUT) 7-6(5), 6-2, 6-4

"I was feeling pretty dodgy the first day I arrived," Arthurs said. "I got a good nights sleep Tuesday and Wednesday and got into the swing very quickly. To come out here with probably only two hours practice on this grass court, it makes it one of my most pleasing wins."

Czech Republic at Argentina
Surface: Clay outdoors

Jiri Novak (CZE) vs. David Nalbandian (ARG)
Tomas Berdych (CZE) vs. Guillermo Coria (ARG)

"I'm very happy to play first," Novak said, trying to sound upbeat. "Argentina are very strong but we are going to do all we can to win and give everything on court."

Chile at Russia
Surface: Carpet indoors

Fernando Gonzalez (CHI) vs. Mikhail Youzhny (RUS)
Adrian Garcia (CHI) vs. Marat Safin (RUS)

"We know that Chileans, like all South Americans, like slow surfaces so we'll make it super fast, even faster than we have at our annual Kremlin Cup tournament," said Russian captain Shamil Tarpishchev. "We're the home team so we have to make it count. I'm sure they would have done the same thing to us if we played them on their turf." Chile, without their top player, Nicolas Massu, out with a toe injury, is screwed.

Sweden at France
Surface: Clay indoors

Joachim Johansson (SWE) vs. Paul-Henri Mathieu (FRA)
Thomas Johansson (SWE) vs. Sebastien Grosjean (FRA)

Grosjean returns after a thigh injury that forced him out of the Australian Open, and J. Johansson was doubtful until Monday with a shoulder injury. "Sebastien is getting better, which we could see during the training sessions," said French captain Guy Forget. "It would have been a mistake not having him in the squad. I'm looking forward to have him back on court. He trained pretty well and we are going to see a brand new player."

Belarus at Romania
Surface: Clay indoors

Max Mirnyi (BLR) vs. Victor Hanescu (ROM)
Vladimir Voltchkov (BLR) vs. Andrei Pavel (ROM)

"I completely trust Victor Hanescu, who is a very experienced player," Pavel said of his teammate playing the opener against The Beast. "Now he is in good shape. I really feel it during our training sessions, where he constantly beats me. I hope that Hanescu will get a point in the first game. If he wins, it is going to be easier for me to play."

Croatia at USA
Surface: Hard outdoors

Ivan Ljubicic (CRO) vs. Andre Agassi (USA)
Mario Ancic (CRO) vs. Andy Roddick (USA)

"We have respect for them," U.S. captain Patrick McEnroe said. "The guys have had a great week of practice and worked extremely hard. They basically have a two-man team, but a very good two-man team. To be able to win three points over three days is pretty difficult."