Events / Editor / 20 May 2007 /

While Roger Federer bids to win his fourth Hamburg Masters title and Raphael Nadal aims to take his first later today, many of the other top names in men's tennis are in Dusseldorf for the start of this week's 30 ARAG-sponsored World Team Cup, taking place from today until Friday.

Hosts and four-time champions Germany, who were runners-up to Croatia last year, will open the action later today against Belgium.

Eight nations are competing at the Rochusclub, split into two groups. Germany, Belgium, Spain and the Czech Republic are in the Blue Group while USA, Argentina, Chile and Sweden are the Red Group.

The championships were first contested in 1978 and provide the perfect warm-up for next week's French Open in Paris.

Germany and the USA are the only nations to have competed in every edition of the round-robin competition but Germany had to wait until 1989 for the first of their four wins. USA, Australia and Sweden have each won the trophy three times.

Croatia's win last year meant they became the eighth nation to lift the trophy and the Davis Cup in the same year but they are missing from this week's line-up.

The big names competing are Argentina's world No 17 David Nalbandian, No 9 James Blake for USA and No 5 Fernando Gonzalez for Chile. The Americans would have had a formidable line-up had not world No 4 Andy Roddick switched plans and gone to this week's Portschach tournament in Austria as he looks for last-minute clay-court practice before Paris.

But the Americans still have possibly the strongest team, with the world's No 1 doubles pair Mike and Bob Bryan back for the third year in a row. They have lost just one of six matches in the World Team Cup.

Gonzalez's Chile team accepted a wild card into the event, which they won four years ago when he, Nicolas Massu and Marcelo Rios lifted the trophy.

In 2004 Gonzalez and Massu retained the title and went on to win the Olympic gold medals in doubles, while Massu took the singles title.

The Dusseldorf event brings the best out of Australian Open runner-up Gonzalez. He has lost just two of 13 singles and only one of six doubles. He and Massu will have to hit top form to test the USA and a strong Sweden team featuring Robin Soderling, Thomas Johansson and Jonas Bjorkman.

The top team in each group after the round-robin matches will meet in the final on Friday in a tournament which is being televised in 175 countries and offers 1.5m euros in prize money.

In-form German star Philipp Kohlschreiber starts today's action against Belgium's 5ft 5in Olivier Rochus, while Florian Mayer takes on Kristof Vliegen. Mayer was in the German team that last won the trophy two years ago.

On the second centre court Juan Ignacio Chela opens Argentina's bid against Sweden's Soderling while Jose Acasuso takes on Bjorkman.

Tomorrow the USA meet Chile while the Czech Republic face Spain.

The team line-ups:

BLUE GROUP

Germany: Tommy Haas, Philipp Kohlschreiber, Benjamin Becker, Florian Mayer, Alexander Waske and Michael Kohlmann.

Belgium: Kristof Vliegen, Olivier Rochus and Steve Darcia.

Czech Republic: Tomas Berdych, Radek Stepanek and Jacub Hasek

Spain: David Ferrer, Nicolas Almargro and Bartoleme Salva-Vidal

RED GROUP

USA: James Blake, Mardy Fish, Bob and Mike Bryan.

Argentina: Jose Acasuso, Agustin Calleri, Juan Ignacio Chela

Sweden: Robin Soderling, Jonas Bjorkman, Thomas Johansson.

Chile: Fernando Gonzalez, Nicolas Massu and Jorge Peratta.

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