Davenport, Serena enthusiastic in return to Fed Cup

DELRAY BEACH, Fla. -- Despite recent injuries, Serena Williams and Lindsay Davenport are eager to play for the United States in first-round Fed Cup matches against Belgium this weekend.

Williams is recovering from a sprained left ankle that forced her to retire from a quarterfinal match April 8 at the Bausch & Lomb Championships.

"I'm feeling a little bit better," Williams said Wednesday. "Most of all, I'm really looking forward to playing Delray since I never played here and I live in the area. I'm going to make every effort to be in the competition."

Top-ranked Davenport, nursing a hip flexor injury, retired in the third set of her quarterfinal match Friday against eventual champion Justine Henin-Hardenne at the Family Circle Cup.

"I'm feeling great and my hip is feeling fine," Davenport said. "Practice is going really well, and I'm looking forward to Saturday. There's no problem whatsoever. I made the decision to stop before it got bad."

Venus Williams and doubles player Corina Morariu round out the U.S. team, which will play Saturday and Sunday. The Williams sisters and Davenport haven't played Fed Cup together since 1999, when the United States won the team event.

The Belgian team includes Els Callens, Kirsten Flipkens, Evelyne Vanhyfte and Leslie Butkiewicz. None are ranked in the top 150.

Former No. 1s Henin-Hardenne and Kim Clijsters, who recently returned from injuries, chose not to play for Belgium.