EVERETT — When the United States takes on Latvia’s team in the Fed Tennis Cup at Angel of the Winds Arena Feb. 7 and 8, all eyes may be on Serena Williams when she takes the court.
Yes, that Serena Williams. Is there another tennis champ? The U.S. Tennis Association announced that 23-time Grand Slam champion Williams will be on the U.S. team.
Williams last played the Fed Cup in February 2018. She’s 13-0 in singles and 3-2 in doubles, over 10 Fed Cups played since 1999, when she and sister Venus were a part of the Americans’ Fed Cup title-winning team. Williams is currently ranked No. 9 and won her 73rd career WTA singles title earlier this month in Auckland, New Zealand.
The qualifying competition against Latvia is a best-of-five match series played over two days, with each country bringing a team of four or five players. The ‘tie,’ as the event is called, begins at 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 7, with two singles matches between each country’s No. 1-nominated and No. 2-nominated players. Two reverse singles matches, between each country’s No. 1s and each country’s No. 2s, and the doubles match will follow at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 8.
The winner of this matchup advances to the 2020 Fed Cup by BNP Paribas Finals April 14-19 in Budapest, Hungary, where 12 nations converge on one venue to compete for the title.
The U.S. team can feature as many as five players, and the final nominations must be made by 10 a.m. ET on Tuesday, Jan. 28. The U.S. currently has seven players in the Top 30 of the world rankings.
Matches will be played at Angel of the Winds Arena on a temporary indoor hard court, with an amended schedule possible for Saturday should one nation clinch victory in the third or fourth singles match.
Tickets can be purchased at usta.com/fedcup. Two-day ticket packages for both Friday and Saturday — the best initial ticket value — will be sold at prices ranging from $50 to $250 or $25 to $125 per day. Single-day tickets for Friday or Saturday will be sold with prices ranging from $30 to $135 per day.
Visit www.usta.com/fedcup for more information.
