The ITF has announced the seeds for the Draw for the Fed Cup by BNP Paribas World Group and World Group II play-offs. The Draw will take place on Tuesday 14 February at the ITF offices in London at 12:00 GMT.
The seeds are based on the new ITF Fed Cup Nations Ranking of 6 February. In both the World Group and World Group II play-offs, the four seeded nations are drawn against the four unseeded nations.
World Group play-offs
Seeded nations
- USA (1)
- Belgium (2)
- Spain (3)
- Australia (4)
Unseeded nations
- Germany
- Japan
- Slovak Republic
- Ukraine
World Group II play-offs
Seeded nations
- France (1)
- Switzerland (2)
- Sweden (3)
- Argentina (4)
Unseeded nations
- Belarus
- China, P.R.
- Great Britain
- Slovenia
The World Group and World Group II play-offs will take place alongside the World Group semifinals on 21-22 April. In the semifinals, Russia will be at home to Serbia, and Czech Republic will be at home to Italy.
Italy booked their place in the last four with a 3-2 win over Ukraine in Biella, a result that maintained their position as the No. 1 ranked nation in Fed Cup. The tie went down to the deciding fifth rubber with the doubles pairing of Flavia Pennetta and Roberta Vinci clinching the vital point.
Czech Republic, the defending Fed Cup champions, have also held their No. 2 spot in the rankings. The Czechs had an easier time in their 4-1 victory against Germany in Stuttgart after Petra Kvitova and Iveta Benesova combined to win the opening three singles rubbers.
Russia, last year's Fed Cup runners-up, advanced to the semifinals for the sixth straight season after defeating Spain 3-2 in Moscow. The result means that Russia are also non-movers in the new rankings, staying in the No. 3 position.
Serbia, on the other hand, jumped two places to No. 5 in the rankings, just behind USA. The Serbs will be making their debut in the semifinals after winning their first ever World Group tie at the weekend, edging past Belgium 3-2 in Charleroi.