Davis Cup: Switzerland begins defense without star players
Without Roger Federer and Stan Wawrinka, Switzerland begins its Davis Cup defense in Belgium with no player ranked in the top 250.
The Swiss tennis federation announced its team on Tuesday for next week's first-round tie in Liege, leaving out 226th-ranked Marco Chiudinelli, who is injured.
That leaves No. 294 Yann Marti as the best ranked of the four-man Swiss team, joined by Adrien Bossel, Henri Laaksonen and Michael Lammer.
Federer and Wawrinka are skipping the Davis Cup after giving Switzerland its first title last November.
Though Wawrinka could be available for future ties, Federer has said he will not play in Davis Cup this year.
Belgium is led by No. 21 David Goffin, though he is the only top-100 player in its team for the March 6-8 tie.
