Chinese No. 1 Li Na will face tournament debutant Alize Cornet
in the opening singles rubber of the Fed Cup world group tie
against a weakened France side in Beijing on Saturday.
France's Virginie Razzano, no stranger to tennis in the region
after winning the Guangzhou International last September, will then
face China's No. 2 Peng Shuai in the second singles match.
Nathalie Dechy will partner Razzano against 2006 Wimbledon and
Australia Open doubles champions Yan Zi and Zheng Jie tomorrow.
Two-time Fed Cup winner France is fielding a second-string team
in the absence of former world No. 1 Amelie Mauresmo and last
year's Wimbledon finalist Marion Bartoli, who opted out of the
tie.
While rating France as the "underdogs" going into the tie, team
captain Georges Goven said his young team would try to exploit any
pressure China might feel in front of home fans in Beijing, which
will also host the Olympic Games.
"China, in front of their own crowd, preparing for the Olympics,
has a very strong image to defend, which will maybe - and I hope
very strongly - give them a little bit of stress. So we can take
profit from that," he told reporters.
(Agencies via Shanghai Daily February 2, 2008)