Fed Cup Final — U.S. vs. Belarus • Order of Play

(L-R) Players Coco Vandeweghe, Alison Riske, captain Kathy Rinaldi, Shelby Rogers and Sloane Stephens of the USA Fed Cup team attend a press conference in Minsk, Belarus, 08 November 2017. Belarus will face USA in the tennis Fed Cup World Group final tie at Chizhovka Arena in Minsk on 11 and 12 November 2017. EPA-EFE/TATYANA ZENKOVICH

 

 

FED CUP FINAL

Minsk, Belarus ~ Chizhovka Arena ~ November 11-12

 

ORDER OF PLAY

The Fed Cup by BNP Paribas World Group Final between the U.S. and Belarus will begin with a match-up between No. 1 American and world No. 10 CoCo Vandeweghe and Belarus No. 2 and world No. 87 Aliaksandra Sasnovich. The second match on Saturday will pit No. 2 American and world No. 13 Sloane Stephens against Belarus’ top player and world No. 78 Aryna Sabalenka.

 

The full order of play was determined at Friday’s draw ceremony at the City Hall in Minsk.

 

DAY/LOCAL TIME (ET)  Saturday, 2:30 p.m. (6:30 a.m. ET) Singles A:             CoCo Vandeweghe (USA) v. Aliaksandra Sasnovich (BLR) Singles B:             Sloane Stephens (USA) v. Aryna Sabalenka (BLR)   Sunday, 2:00 p.m. (6:00 a.m. ET) Singles C:            CoCo Vandeweghe (USA) v. Aryna Sabalenka (BLR) Singles D:            Sloane Stephens (USA) v. Aliaksandra Sasnovich (BLR) Doubles:              Shelby Rogers (USA) / Alison Riske (USA) v. Vera Lapko (BLR) / Lidziya Marozava (BLR)

 

DAY 1 PREVIEW NOTES

Saturday’s first singles match will see CoCo Vandeweghe, the 25-year old American No. 1 and 2017 US Open and Australian Open semifinalist, take on 23-year old Belarus No. 2 Aliaksandra Sasnovich. This will be the first-ever match-up between these two players in WTA or Fed Cup competition.

 

Vandeweghe, playing in her seventh Fed Cup tie for the U.S. and third straight tie of the year, is ranked a career-high No. 10 in the world. She holds a 5-3 record in singles and a 4-0 record in doubles in Fed Cup competition. She played a crucial role in leading the U.S. Fed Cup team to the final this year, winning both of her singles matches in the first round in Maui. Vandeweghe then won both of her singles matches in the semifinal in Tampa Bay, Fla., and clinched the tie for the U.S. in the fifth-and-decisive rubber to become the first U.S. Fed Cup player since 1996 to win three live matches in one tie. Vandeweghe has had a strong year on the WTA Tour, reaching the semifinals of the US Open and Australian Open and reaching the final of the US Open Series event in Stanford, Calif., and the WTA Elite Trophy in Zhuhai last week.

 

Sasnovich, ranked No. 87 and the No. 2 Belarus player, has went 4-0 in singles play in Fed Cup this year, leading the Belarus team to its first-ever Fed Cup Final with upsets over the Netherlands in the first round and Switzerland in the semifinals. She is 13-7 in singles and 5-3 in doubles in Fed Cup and today, she received the Fed Cup Heart Award. Sasnovich has reached one WTA final in her career (Seoul in 2015).

 

Saturday’s second singles match will see 24-year old Sloane Stephens, the No. 2 American and 2017 US Open champion, take on 19-year old Belarus No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka. This will also be the first-ever match-up between these two players in WTA or Fed Cup competition.

 

Stephens, who is ranked No. 13 in the world, is competing in her first Fed Cup tie since the 2016 World Group II First Round in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. She is competing in her fifth Fed Cup tie for the U.S. and holds a 2-2 record in singles play and 1-1 in doubles. Stephens won her first career Grand Slam singles title by capturing the US Open this year after being ranked as low as No. 957 in July, her ranking having dropped after she missed 11 months following surgery on her left foot. At the US Open, Stephens defeated compatriot Madison Keys in the first All-American final since 2002. Prior to the US Open this summer, Stephens reached the semifinals of back-to-back US Open Series events in Toronto and Cincinnati in the third and fourth tournaments of her comeback. She also holds five WTA titles and in 2013, defeated Serena Williams en route to the semifinals of the Australian Open.

 

Sabalenka, ranked No. 78 and Belarus’ top singles player, is competing in her fourth Fed Cup tie. She holds a 2-2 record in Fed Cup singles play and a 0-1 record in doubles. She clinched the victory for Belarus in the fourth singles rubber in both the first round and semifinals this year. She also received the Fed Cup Heart Award for the 2017 Fed Cup first round. Sabalenka peaked at No. 76 in the world this October after reaching her first career WTA final in Tianjin, China, losing to Maria Sharapova.

 

The United States Fed Cup team is looking to win its first Fed Cup title since 2000 and record 18th overall title. The team made its last appearance in the Fed Cup Final in 2010, when a team featuring Vandeweghe and Bethanie Mattek-Sands lost to Italy, 3-1, in San Diego. Belarus will be competing in its first-ever Fed Cup Final. The U.S. holds a 1-0 record over Belarus in Fed Cup competition, sweeping the Belarusians, 5-0, in the World Group II First Round in February 2012 in Worcester, Mass.

 

Fed Cup is the world’s largest annual international team competition in women’s sport, with approximately 100 nations taking part each year. The U.S. holds an overall 148-36 record in Fed Cup competition with a 108-30 record in away and neutral ties. For more information, including access to player and historical Fed Cup records, please go to www.usta.com/fedcup or www.fedcup.com. Follow the U.S. Fed Cup team on Facebook @USTA, on Twitter @USTA, and on Instagram @USTA. Wilson is the official ball of the U.S. Fed Cup team. Deloitte is the official team sponsor of the U.S. Fed Cup Team for the first time in 2017.

 

WHERE TO WATCH In AMERICA

Tennis Channel will air live daily coverage on Saturday at 6:30 a.m. ET and on Sunday at 6:00 a.m. ET.

(L-R) Players Vera Lapko, Aliaksandra Sasnovich, Aryna Sabalenka, captain Eduard Dubrou, Aryna Sabalenka and Lidziya Marozava of the Belarussian Fed Cup team attend a press conference in Minsk, Belarus, 08 November 2017. Belarus will face USA in the tennis Fed Cup World Group final tie at Chizhovka Arena in Minsk on 11 and 12 November 2017. EPA-EFE/TATYANA ZENKOVICH