WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. — No. 17 Madison Keys and No. 23 Danielle Collins will lead the U.S. Fed Cup team against Australia next month.
Sofia Kenin and Nicole Melichar will join them on the team announced Wednesday by the U.S. Tennis Association and team captain Kathy Rinaldi. The 25-year-old Collins recently reached her first Grand Slam semifinal at the Australian Open.
The first round of the World Group will be Feb. 9-10 in Asheville, North Carolina.
The U.S. will face No. 14 Ashleigh Barty and No. 46 Daria Gavrilova, along with Priscilla Hon, Kimberly Birrell and Astra Sharma on a hard court at U.S. Cellular Center. The 22-year-old Barty is coming off a quarterfinal appearance at the Australian Open.
The U.S. is 9-5 all time vs. the Aussies. The Americans won their previous meeting in the 2016 World Group Playoff.
The winner will face Germany or Belarus in the semifinals on April 20-21.