Davis Cup by BNP Paribas – United States vs Switzerland (Match Preview)

Written by: Staff on 9th February 2012

Davis Cup by BNP Paribas - United States vs Switzerland (Match Preview)

Roger Federer of Switzerland celebrates after his match against Bernard Tomic of Australia in their fourth round match at Rod Laver Arena during the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne, Australia, 22 January 2012. EPA/JOE CASTRO AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND OUT |

The 2012 Davis Cup by BNP Paribas World Group first round match between the United States and Switzerland will take place from Friday, February 10, to Sunday, February 12, in Fribourg, Switzerland, at the Fribourg Forum on a temporary indoor red clay court.

The U.S. will play on the road for the fifth time in six ties since it defeated Switzerland in the 2009 first round in Birmingham, Ala. The U.S. had played in four consecutive away ties, before their last outing against Spain in Austin, Texas in the 2011 World Group quarterfinal.

This first round tie will mark the fourth matchup overall between the U.S. and Switzerland in Davis Cup competition, with the U.S. leading the overall series 2-1. The first matchup between the U.S. and Switzerland occurred in the 1992 Davis Cup final, a 3-1 U.S. victory which current U.S. Captain Jim Courier clinched in the third singles rubber in Fort Worth, Texas (Andy Roddick and his family attended that final). It is Switzerland’s only appearance in the Davis Cup final. The next three meetings between the two nations have been first round contests. The United States beat Switzerland 4-1 in the 2009 first round in Birmingham, Ala., the last meeting between the two countries. Roger Federer did not compete for the Swiss in Birmingham, but he did record all three points in the 2001 first round tie in Switzerland for its only victory in the series.

Mardy Fish will compete as the U.S. team’s No. 1 player for just the third time in his career. In the 2010 World Group Playoff in Colombia, Fish, playing at the No. 1 position, became the first U.S. player to win three live rubbers in a single tie since Pete Sampras in 1995 Davis Cup Final. Fish won two five-set singles matches in Bogota (only the second American ever to do so in Davis Cup, matching Courier’s feat in the 1999 first round vs. Great Britain). and also won the doubles match with John Isner. In the 2011 quarterfinal against Spain, Fish spent more than eight hours on court, losing a five-set match to Feliciano Lopez and a four-set match to David Ferrer that featured two tiebreaks.

This will mark just the third Davis Cup tie in which the world No. 1 doubles team of Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan will not compete together, as Bob Bryan and his wife recently gave birth to their first child. The brothers, who win 18 victories are the winningest team in U.S. Davis Cup history, are each 1-0 when playing separately in Davis Cup competition. Mike Bryan and Mardy Fish partnered to give the U.S. its only point in the 2008 4-1 semifinal loss in Spain, while Bob Bryan and John Isner kept the U.S. alive in the 2010 first round tie in Serbia, which the Serbians ultimately won 3-2.

The United States owns the longest uninterrupted run in the World Group, dating back to 1989. The U.S. has a winning record against 35 countries of the 39 countries faced and a level record with two countries. The U.S. is undefeated versus 21 countries and holds an active winning streak against 33 nations. They lead all nations with 32 Davis Cup titles.

ORDER OF PLAY

DAY/LOCAL TIME EVENT DETAILS/PAIRING

Friday, 1 p.m. Singles A: Mardy Fish (U.S. No. 1) vs. Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI No. 2)

Singles B: John Isner (U.S. No. 2) vs. Roger Federer (SUI No. 1)

Saturday, 2:30 p.m. Doubles: * Mike Bryan and Ryan Harrison (USA) vs. Federer/Wawrinka (SUI)

Sunday, 12 p.m. Singles C: Fish (U.S.) vs. Federer (SUI)

Singles D: Isner (U.S.) vs. Wawrinka (SUI)

*Team captains may substitute the doubles team up to one hour before the match.

Davis Cup Team Comparison:

United States vs. SWITZERLAND

United States	Davis Cup Comparison	Switzerland
1900	First year played	1923
97	Years played	82
275 (210-66)	Ties played	152 (70-82)
31 (57-24)	Years in World Group (since 1981; including 2011)	21 (9-20)
32-time Champion (32-29 in finals)	Best Finish	Runner-up (to the U.S.) in 1992

U.S. vs. Switzerland Head-to-Head Player Breakdown

	Roger Federer	Stanislas Wawrinka
Mardy Fish	1-7 (Federer has won five on hard and two on grass; they have never met on clay)	2-0 (Fish won both matches on hard courts)
John Isner	0-2 (Federer has won both matchups on hard courts)	2-1 (Isner has a win on hard and a win on clay; Wawrinka won the first matchup on hard)

INDIVIDUAL RANKINGS & RECORDS (as of February 6)*

INDIVIDUAL SINGLES RESULTS

UNITED STATES Player	Singles Ranking	Doubles Ranking	SINGLES 2011/2012	CAREER	TITLES (2011)
Mardy Fish	No. 8	No. 118	43-25/1-1	276-200	6 (1)
John Isner	No. 17	No. 35	36-22/2-2	122-89	3 (2)
Ryan Harrison	No. 95	No. 171	14-19/1-3	20-32	0 (0)

Mike Bryan	—	No. 1	DOUBLES 60-16/9-1	740-240	78 (8-1 in ‘12)

SWITZERLAND Player	Singles Ranking	Doubles Ranking	SINGLES 2011/2012	CAREER	TITLES (2011)
Roger Federer	No. 3	No. 129	64-12/7-1	814-187	70 (4)
Stanislas Wawrinka	No. 28	No. 91	35-20/3-2	215-157	3 (1)
Marco Chiudinelli Michael Lammer	No. 190 No. 251	No. 655 No. 619	3-4/0-1 1-2/0-0	41-67 6-20	0 (0) 0 (0)

HEAD-TO-HEAD: UNITED STATES vs. SWITZERLAND

THE SERIES IS 2-1 IN FAVOR OF THE U.S.: This will be the fourth time that the United States and Switzerland have met in Davis Cup competition. It will be the first meeting between the two countries since a first round tie in March 2009 in Birmingham, Ala., which the U.S. won 4-1. Switzerland beat the U.S. 3-2 in the 2001 first round in Basel, the last time the two countries met in Switzerland.

Year	Score	Round	Location	Surface
2012	TBD	World Group First Round	Fribourg, Switzerland	Indoor Clay
2009	USA, 4-1	World Group First Round	Birmingham, AL	Indoor Hard
2001	SUI, 3-2	World Group First Round	Basel, Switzerland	Indoor Hard
1992	USA, 3-1	World Group Final	Fort Worth, TX	Indoor Hard

U.S. vs. SWITZERLAND RECORD HOME-AWAY BREAKDOWN BY SURFACE
United States			SWITZERLAND
Home	Neutral	Surface	Home	Neutral
2-0	—	Hard	1-0	—
—	—	Clay		—
—	—	Indoor Carpet	—	—
—	—	Grass	—	—
2-0	—	OVERALL	1-0	—

The 1992 matchup between the U.S. and Switzerland was the only time the Swiss had played in the Davis Cup final. The Swiss faced the overpowering U.S. team of Andre Agassi, Jim Courier, John McEnroe, and Pete Sampras with the U.S. taking the match 3-1. The United States won one more Davis Cup title three years later and then faced a drought for twelve years until the team won the trophy in 2007 against Russia.

The only meeting between the two nations played in Switzerland was played in the 2001 World Group first round, played on indoor hard court in Basel, Switzerland. Roger Federer accounted for all three points in singles and doubles play to clinch a 3-2 victory over the U.S. Andy Roddick made his Davis Cup debut in the match, defeating George Bastl in a dead rubber.

The last meeting between the two nations was played on an indoor hard court in Birmingham, Ala., in the 2009 World Group first round. After Stanislas Wawrinka beat James Blake to open the tie, Andy Roddick sandwiched two singles victories around a doubles victory by Bob and Mike Bryan to clinch the tie for the U.S.

2009 World Group First Round: United States def. Switzerland, 4-1

Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex Arena, Birmingham, Ala., (Indoor Hard) * March 6-8, 2009

Captains – Switzerland: Severin Luthi U.S.: Patrick McEnroe

Singles A: Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI) d. James Blake 3-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-6(3)

Singles B: Andy Roddick (USA) d. Marco Chiudinelli 6-1, 6-3, 7-6(5)

Doubles: Bob Bryan/Mike Bryan (USA)

d. Yves Allegro/Stanislas Wawrinka 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(2)

Singles C: Andy Roddick (USA) d. Stanislas Wawrinka 6-4, 6-4, 6-2

Singles D: James Blake (USA) d. Marco Chiudinelli 6-4, 7-6(6)

2001 World Group First Round: Switzerland def. United States, 3-2

St. Jakobs Hall, Basel, SUI, (Indoor Hard) * February 9-11, 2001

Captains – Switzerland: Jakob Hlasek U.S.: Patrick McEnroe