In her comeback to the German tennis team, Angelique Kerber will initially only compete in doubles at the Billie Jean King Cup in São Paulo against Brazil.
The former world number one is scheduled to play alongside Anna-Lena Friedsam against Beatriz Haddad Maia/Luisa Stefani at the end of the qualifying round on Saturday (April 13, 2024).
Maria and Siegemund planned for singles
However, the four individual matches on Friday (April 12, 2024) and Saturday are scheduled to be contested by former Wimbledon semi-finalists Tatjana Maria and Laura Siegemund. However, team boss Rainer Schüttler has the opportunity to change the line-up again for the second matchday.
“Both Tatjana and Laura have trained well here, feel comfortable and are in good shape,” Schüttler was quoted as saying in an association statement on Thursday: “Tatjana has never lost against Pigossi, which is a small psychological advantage. She came out South America here to São Paulo, which made the transition easier for her overall.”
Siegemund recently “played very well in singles” at the Masters 1000 tournament in Miami and therefore earned their selection.
Returning after a year and a half of maternity leave
Kerber, who returned to the tour at the turn of the year after an 18-month maternity break, was thrown out in the first round in Miami. At the previous tournament in Indian Wells she reached the fourth round and showed some strong tennis at times. Kerber last took part in the Billie Jean King Cup for Germany in 2022 before the birth of her daughter Liana.
The 36-year-old Siegemund will start the nations competition on Friday (April 12, 2024, 11:30 p.m. CEST) against the world number 13. Beatriz Haddad Maia. Maria (36) then fights against Laura Pigossi for a point for the German Tennis Association (DTB) team in the Ginásio Ibirapuera Arena, which has a capacity of around 10,000 spectators. On Saturday Maria will compete against Haddad Maia and Siegemund against Pigossi.
Niemeier not there this time
The winner qualifies for the finals in Seville in November, the loser plays in the relegation zone to avoid relegation. In addition to Kerber, Maria, Siegemund and Friedsam, Eva Lys is also in the German squad. Jule Niemeier, who has been in poor form for months, was not taken into account.
Last year, the German team without Kerber won against Brazil 3-1 in Stuttgart and qualified for the final round of the Billie Jean King Cup. In a country comparison, Germany is 5-0.
