DTB team with a difficult task: tennis ladies want to crack “FC Bayern”

DTB team with a difficult task
Tennis ladies want to crack “FC Bayern”

You are “dangerous” yourself, but your opponent is the “FC Bayern” of tennis: The German tennis ladies are facing an exciting task at the start of their unofficial team world championship. The DTB team wants to surprise against the Czech Republic.

The German tennis women are confident about the start of the Billie Jean King Cup, the unofficial team world championship, against the weakened host Czech Republic. “I’m sure we’re dangerous,” said team captain Rainer Schüttler in Prague. The selection for the former world number one Angelique Kerber is considered an outsider in the difficult group with the Czech Republic and Switzerland, but has a good chance of reaching the semi-finals. “We have a very good team with great players and can play without pressure, that will help us,” said ex-professional Schüttler.

The first group game will take place on Monday (5 p.m.) in the O2 arena in the Czech capital. Two-time Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova and former world number one Karolina Pliskova are missing from the Czechs. But with the French Open winner Barbora Krejcikova and her doubles partner Katerina Siniakova, who won gold in doubles at the Olympics in Tokyo, the Czechs are favored despite the two failures.

“I don’t think that makes that much difference,” said Andrea Petkovic, who is a single player alongside Kerber. “The Czech women have the advantage that they are so well positioned across the board. Five people can turn it down, in Germany you would say they are FC Bayern Munich, the tennis nation,” said the 34-year-old from Darmstadt. It will be “incredibly difficult”, but she has “great confidence in our team and we will try our best tomorrow,” said Petkovic.

The second group game is on Tuesday (5 p.m.) against Switzerland with Olympic champion Belinda Bencic. A game consists of two singles and one double. Only the first of the four groups of three will reach the semi-finals on Friday.

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