Federer keen to play in Davis Cup

Tennis world number one Roger Federer wants to play in Switzerland's Davis Cup play-off against Italy in September, according to team captain Severin Lüthi.

Federer was missing due to a back injury when Switzerland lost 4-1 to the United States in the first round of the World Group in March at Birmingham, Alabama, in March.

The Swiss face Italy in a play-off at Genoa on September 18-20 to stay in the elite 16-team group with a chance to win the 2010 title.

Federer will be 29 when next year’s final is played, with few chances left to fulfil his ambition of winning a first Davis Cup title for Switzerland.

Lüthi, who is also part of Federer’s coaching team, said the top-ranked player told him in May and again at Wimbledon that he intended to play in Italy.

“Even if we haven’t been given an easy opponent, Federer was happy he didn’t have to play at the other end of the world,” he told the Lausanne-based daily Le Matin on Wednesday.

Federer is currently taking a break after his wife Mirka gave birth to twin girls on July 23. He is scheduled to return at the Montreal Masters on August 10.

“If the twins are in good health I don’t see any problem,” Lüthi said of Federer playing against Italy.

The best-of-five series against Italy is to be played on outdoor clay courts, beginning five days after the men’s singles final of the US Open on hard courts where Federer is the five-time defending champion.

Federer would likely team up with the 24th-ranked Stanislas Wawrinka to play singles and doubles against the Italians. The pair won Olympic gold in the men’s doubles at Beijing last August, then a few weeks later won all their matches as Switzerland beat Belgium in a World Group play-off.

swissinfo.ch and agencies