Tennis

Belgium without stars in Fed Cup

Published Apr. 10, 2012 1:00 a.m. ET

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Belgium will travel to Japan for the Fed Cup World Group playoffs without Kim Clijsters and Yanina Wickmayer.

Belgium announced Tuesday it will have no player ranked higher than 176th Kirsten Flipkens for the April 21-22 matches. Clijsters has a torn hip muscle and will make her return to the tour at the Madrid Open, which starts May 5.

Wickmayer, Belgium's highest ranked player at No. 30, wants to focus on the WTA tour. A return to hard courts in Japan when she will be preparing for the clay court season in Europe was considered too much of a risk.

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