Black Tennis Pros

TOULON, France (AP) — Gael Monfils will face Philipp Kohlschreiber in the opening singles of the Davis Cup first-round tie between France and Germany on Friday.

Monfils leads Kohlschreiber 2-0 in their head-to-head but is still chasing his first victory in the Davis Cup.

"We know Kohlschreiber's ability to raise his game and beat the best players in the world," France captain Guy Forget said on Thursday. "Gael knows it will be a tough match. He knows it will be painful."


Jo-Wilfried Tsonga will play Benjamin Becker in the second rubber on the indoor hardcourt of the Palais des Sports.

Tsonga has a perfect record in the event with six wins in six matches while Becker has lost his only two Davis Cup matches.

The French pairing of Michael Llodra and Julien Benneteau was drawn to take on Kohlschreiber and Christopher Kas in doubles on Saturday.

France is the heavy favourite as Tsonga and Monfils are former top-10 players while Germany will miss its best player, Tommy Haas, who is recovering from hip surgery last week.


"The French have come with the best team they have at the moment," Kohlschreiber said. "In both (singles) matches they're the favourite. It's going to be tough for us. But we have a good team spirit."

France has a 5-2 record against Germany in the Davis Cup. In their last meeting four years ago, France won 3-2 after leading 3-0.

France has won the title nine times compared to three times for Germany.