2011 Fed Cup: Vera Zvonareva vs Sara Errani – Semi-final Preview
World number three Vera Zvonareva will compete against Sara Errani of Italy in the opening tie, as the strong Russian squad will take on the two times defending champion, Team Italy in the semi-final of the Fed Cup on 16th of
April at the Sports Palace Megasport, Moscow, Russia. An action-packed thriller is anticipated among the two women as they battle out for their national pride on Saturday.
Reckoned to be one of the most versatile players in women’s tennis, 26-year-old Zvonareva is leading the Russian side. Her individual performances against the 43rd ranked Errani has been outstanding, as she had defeated
the Italian on all the three prior occasions she faced her. Zvonareva beat Errani twice last year and lead the head-to-head series to 3-0, making her hot favourite for the Fed Cup tie against the Italy.
The two women have represented their respective countries in the Fed Cup campaigns several times before but are competing against each other for the first time in singles rubber. Errani was the member of the Team Italy who won
the last two Fed Cups and has a 100 per cent winning record in the tournament. However, she has been the part of the doubles team most of the time, having fewer opportunities to compete in individual rubbers. Less can be said about how Errani will tackle the
huge pressure while competing against the world number three in her home ground.
The hard-hitting Zvonareva has been the part of Team Russia when it won the Fed Cup titles in 2004 and then in 2008. Her magnificent performances in the tournament had played pivotal role in her countries title wins and she is
again expecting to repeat the same feats against the Italian. The last time Zvonareva took part in the Fed Cup was in 2008, when she defeated Vania King of the United States in the semi-final and then won the singles rubber against the Spanish, Anabel Medina
Garrigues, to take her side to championship victory. Her agonising ankle injury kept her sidelined from professional tennis for a while, missing the Fed Cup tie against Italy and some other major tournaments, including the 2009 Roland Garros. It will be Zvonareva’s
first appearance in the Fed Cup in three years and this might be a slight advantage Errani can have over the strong Russian.
Team Italy faced a number of setbacks before the Fed Cup semi-finals, as two of their spearheads, world number four Francesca Schiavone and the 20th ranked Flavia Pennetta were sidelined from the squad. The two Italians
have been phenomenal for Italy in the last two editions of the Fed Cup, winning most of their matches with authority and bringing back-to-back titles to their country. Their absence from the Italian team in the semi-final puts a huge responsibility over the
43rd ranked Errani, who has to deliver her best for Team Italy. This mounting pressure, along with the stress of defending the title for her country might take its toll out of Errani and adversely affect her performance against Zvonareva.
It can be said that on paper, Zvonareva is certainly the hot favourite for the single tie but the abilities of Errani are not to be underestimated in the competition. Whoever wins the contest, one thing is for that it will be a
treat to watch for the crowd at Moscow.
Tags: