It's an interesting debate...I believe there are 5 places available and also it's going to be on clay.
Players in the running are: Anne K, Mel, Katie, Bally, Sarah B, Amanda, Georgie, Claire Curran and Naomi.
Anne surely has to be a certainty as long as she's injury free (something which isn't certain atm with the wrist keeping flaring up).
Mel's form has been very poor so far this year (has she won a singles match yet ?) but maybe she should be selected for the doubles, she's also top 200 in that and made a 25K final in Stockholm.
Katie's made a couple of 25K quarters but her 2007 form hasn't been as good as last autumn. Like Mel, she could also be selected for the doubles, top 200 doubles player and she's made three 25K semis this year. She and Mel played together quite a bit in 2006.
Bally was brilliant in the Fed Cup last year and she's shaken off the rust impressively quickly in Gran Canerias. However, she's still got plenty to prove over the new few weeks. Virtually all the people on other forums said they'd pick her but they seem to be overlooking the fact that she's only played a few tournaments in a year !
Sarah had some great results in North America, however apart from the Wimbledon result last year, she's beaten very few top 150 players....also clay is by far her weakest surface and she hasn't played on it for ages.
Amanda's starting to come into form now but how well would she do on clay with her serve-volley game ? Maybe she could be used for the doubles
It's possibly a year too soon for Georgie,
Personally, I'd pick Anne, Katie, Mel, Naomi and Claire....Bally might replace Katie depending on her results over the new few weeks. Mel and Claire would play the doubles. I'm not sure whether I'd have Naomi or Bally/Katie as the 2nd singles player.
Oh, that's good news. But selection depends on what other players in the country were ranked at that time? Were so many candidates available even back then?
I would select Anne, Elena, Claire and Naomi with Katie as reserve. However Anne is struggling with her wrist and Elena/Nigel may decide it is in Elena's best interests to play tournaments on the circuit rather than Fed Cup to regain her ranking. If neither Anne nor Elena is available then I would replace with Katie/Jane O'Donoghue. Jane appears to be regaining confidence, has the best clay court record after Anne and Elena, with several wins over players in the top 300, and would be a good option for the doubles