Canada set to battle the Bahamas on Thursday in Montreal

Action got underway Wednesday at the Fed Cup by BNP Paribas Americas Zone Group I tie at Montreal’s Uniprix Stadium. Paraguay and Puerto Rico opened the four-day event with victories over their respective opponents. Paraguay defeated Brazil 2-1 to draw first blood in Group B while Puerto Rico was a 2-1 winner over the Bahamas in Group A.

Rossana De Los Rios, ranked no. 95 on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour rankings and 17-year old Veronica Cepede Royg, ranked no. 16 on the ITF Junior rankings, led the way for Paraguay each posting singles triumphs to clinch the tie for their team.

“In Fed Cup, matches are different because we are playing for our country, not for ourselves, and everyone is coming here to win, “ De Los Rios commented after the match. “It was a quick first set and she played much better in the second, so I tried to put more topspin on my shots and I think that helped me win in the third set.”

Meanwhile, Monica Puig, 108^th ranked junior in the world and Jessica Roland Rosario were victorious for Puerto Rico in a hotly contested tie against the Bahamas. This means that the top-ranked Miele Canadian Fed Cup team will make their much-anticipated debut on Thursday evening against the Bahamas. Stéphanie Dubois (Laval, Québec), Sharon Fichman (Toronto), Valérie Tétreault (St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Québec) and Aleksandra Wozniak (Blainville, Québec) will grace centre court for the first time in front of what promises to be a boisterous hometown crowd. Meanwhile, the second-seeded team from Colombia will take on Brazil in Thursday’s Group B tie. 

During Tuesday’s draw ceremony, the participating nations in this Americas Zone Group I tie were divided into two groups (three nations in Group A, three nations in Group B) for round-robin action. The winners of each group will then face off for the chance to take part in the World Group II qualifying round in April 2009. The two lowest ranking teams will be sent to Group II of the Americas Zone in 2010.

Tuesday’s draw produced the following groups and match-ups:                                       

Group A      Wins    Losses           Group B         Wins    Losses

Canada                                               Colombia        

Puerto Rico      1         0                      Brazil               0          1         

Bahamas        0         1                      Paraguay         1          0

            Results for Wednesday February 4, 2009

            GROUP A

            PUERTO RICO defeated the Bahamas 2-1

            Monica Puig (PUR) def. Larikah Russell (BAH) 3-6, 6-4, 7-5

            Jessica Roland Rosario (PUR) def. Nikkita Fountain (BAH) 6-2, 6-2

            Nikkita Fountain/Larikah Russell (BAH) def. Monica Puig/Jessica Roland Rosario (PUR) 6-2, 6-3         

GROUP B

            PARAGUAY defeated Brazil 2-1

            Veronica Cepede Royg (PAR) def. Roxane Vaisemberg (BRA) 4-6, 7-6(2), 6-3

            Rossana De Los Rios (PAR) def. Vivian Segnini (BRA) 6-1, 2-6, 6-2

            Roxane Vaisemberg/Maria Fernanda Alves (BRA) def. Veronica Cepede Royg/ Rossana De Los Rios (PAR) 6-2, 3-6, 6-3