Samantha Stosur and Francesca Schiavone will meet on Sunday for a crucial Fed Cup encounter

With the Australia v Italy scoreline deadlocked at 1-1, Samantha Stosur and Francesca Schiavone will both be extremely determined to tip the balance in favour of their respective nations. Schiavone and Stosur lost to lower ranked opposition on Saturday, and will now be aiming to leave the weekend with at least one victory.

Stosur was unable to snap her losing streak against Flavia Pennetta on Saturday, but will now be looking forward to another big challenge. Stosur leads her head to head with Schiavone 5-2, but was famously defeated by the Italian in last year’s French Open final. Stosur will need to produce a big performance against the world No. 4 to boost Australia’s chances of securing a significant victory over the reigning champions.

Schiavone was stunned by Jarmila Groth in her last match, losing in three sets. That said, she is more than capable of regrouping, and looks set to give Stosur some serious trouble here. Stosur should have the edge, given that the match is taking place on a hard court in Australia, but a Schiavone win seems like a very realistic possibility.