Prague, Jan 30 (CTK) – The strongest possible Czech team, Karolina Pliskova, Barbora Strycova, Petra Kvitova and Lucie Safarova, will appear in the Fed Cup 1st round battle to be held in Prague next week, in which their rivals will be the Swiss.
The strong four-member team will turn up in the Fed Cup event, to be played in Prague’s O2 Arena on February 10-11, after more than two years. The coach is Petr Pala.
The Swiss team includes Timea Bacsinszky, complemented by Belinda Bencic, Viktoria Golubic and Jil Teichmann. Their coach coming to Prague in Martina Hingis, a former world number one player.
In the previous season, the Czech team dropped out after the semifinal match in the USA. Before, the Czechs dominated the Fed Cup, winning it five times between 2011 and 2016.
Last time Karolina Pliskova, Strycova, Kvitova and Safarova played together the Fed Cup final against Russia in Prague in November 2015. Pliskova and Kvitova played singles and it was the Pliskova-Strycova tandem’s victory in the double that decided on the victory of the Czechs.
Kvitova, a double Wimbledon winner who assisted in all the above Czech Fed Cup triumphs, is returning to the team after a year-long pause caused by her hand injury.
Last time the Czechs faced the Swiss in Lucerne in 2016 and advanced to the final owing to their victory in the double.
Czechs have beaten the Swiss in the Fed Cup six times and lost to them only once so far.
