French doubles specialist Llodra ready to face Serbia in singles

AP - Michael Llodra is ready to play both singles and doubles for France in the Davis Cup final against Serbia this weekend.

The French doubles specialist said his win against third-ranked Novak Djokovic at the Paris Masters earlier this month was a confidence booster, "but the Davis Cup is a totally different event.''

France captain Guy Forget has until Thursday's draw to decide who will play. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga is out of the Dec. 3-5 final with a knee injury, leaving Llodra to compete with Gilles Simon and Richard Gasquet for a singles spot alongside Gael Monfils.

"I'm ready, but it's up to Forget to decide,'' Llodra said.

Llodra is the highest ranked of the three players at No. 23, although Gasquet is not far back at 29 and was once ranked in the top 10. "All of our players must not be surprised if they are picked to play on Friday,'' Forget said. "We will miss Jo, but these guys made it to the final without him, so they deserve to be in the final.''

Serbia is seeking its first Davis Cup title against nine-time champion France. The home team will be led by No. 3-ranked Djokovic, who has won all five of the singles matches he has played for Serbia against the United States, Croatia and the Czech Republic in the lead to the finals.

"It's easier to play at home in front of your own crowd, but our real concern is the level of play of Serbian players,'' Forget said. "We know about Djokovic, but we are concerned about Viktor Troicki and Janko Tipsarevic.''

Serbia captain Bogdan Obradovic is also keeping his No. 2 player secret, with Troicki and Tipsarevic competing. "It will be tough against either Troicki or Tipsarevic on Friday,''Monfils said.

The top players - Monfils and Djokovic - will play each other on Sunday when the reverse singles are scheduled.