PORTLAND, Ore., Nov. 28 (UPI) -- The United States Davis Cup team, led by Andy Roddick, is set to open its bid for a 32nd title, battling Russia in the finals in Portland, Ore.
Matches in the best-of-five event will be played Friday through Sunday at the Portland Memorial Coliseum, marking the first time in 15 years the championship is decided on U.S. soil.
Russia won the cup at home last year, defeating Argentina. The Russians also won in 2002.
Besides Roddick, the U.S. team, under captain Patrick McEnroe, features James Blake and brothers Bob and Mike Bryan. Nikolay Davydenko, Igor Andreev, Mikhail Youzhny and Dmitry Tursunov make up the defending champion Russian team. The captain is Shamil Tarpischev.
American teams have won 31 Davis Cup titles and have been in 60 finals. The Americans last won the cup in 1995, with a team led by Pete Sampras beating Russia 3-2 in Moscow.
The last time the finals were played in the U.S., an American team topped Switzerland at Fort Worth, Texas, in 1992.
