Serena Williams has the flu and Venus Williams has a sore wrist, forcing the sisters to pull out of upcoming tournaments. Serena Williams withdrew from the Bangalore Open in India in what would have been her first tournament since her surprising victory at the Australian Open. The WTA Tour said Saturday the eight-time Grand Slam winner is still scheduled to play in the Dubai Championships that…

Venus Williams has pulled out of next week’s Diamond Games because of a lingering wrist injury, organizers said Saturday. Tournament organizer Bob Verbeeck said Williams told him her left wrist was still too sore for a comeback to the tour. Williams is aiming to return for the Feb. 19-25 event in Memphis, Tenn., Verbeeck said on the tournament’s Web site.

Andy Roddick beat Davis Cup rookie Ivo Minar 6-4, 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 Friday to give the United States an early lead against the Czech Republic in a Davis Cup match. Minar, ranked No. 160 in the world, struggled with the powerful serve of the fourth-ranked Roddick — who had 28 aces. In Friday’s second match, sixth-ranked James Blake was to face No.

Rafael Nadal pulled out of his Davis Cup match on Friday against Marco Chiudinelli of Switzerland because of a muscle injury. The second-ranked Spaniard will be replaced by Fernando Verdasco in the World Group’s first-round match. It was unclear if Nadal could play in a possible return singles on Sunday.

The court is clay and the crowd no doubt will be loud. The United States will nevertheless be counting on Andy Roddick for an easy point Friday when he plays Ivo Minar in the opening Davis Cup match against the Czech Republic. “It should be tough, but I feel like I’m ready,” said Roddick, who is ranked No.

Serena Williams has agreed to play for the U.S. Fed Cup team for the first time since 2003. Fresh off her Australian Open title, Williams will join older sister Venus on the squad that faces Belgium in the first round of the Fed Cup in April. “I was very happy when Serena called me and said she wanted to play, especially coming after her big win in Australia,” U.S.

A stacked U.S. Davis Cup team will face a Czech Republic team that doesn’t have a player ranked in the top 10. The Americans have No. 4 Andy Roddick, No. 6 James Blake and the top-ranked doubles pair of Bob and Mike Bryan heading into first-round play of the World Group against the Czechs this weekend. Radek Stepanek, ranked 19th, withdrew to concentrate on the ATP Tour, and 36-year-old Pavel Vizner…

The last time Pete Sampras played competitive tennis in Boston, his doubles team notched the only victory for the United States in the Davis Cup quarterfinals against Australia in 1999. The winner of a record 14 Grand Slam singles titles returns in three months for his first tournament since 2002 when he participates in the Outback Champions Series at Boston University from May 2-6.

Former champion Dinara Safina of Russia beat Michaella Krajicek of the Netherlands 6-4, 7-5 in the opening round of the Gaz de France on Monday. Safina, the 2005 winner, hasn’t lost before the quarterfinals in three previous appearances at the indoor tournament. In the only other first-round match, France’s Emilie Loit outlasted Eleni Daniilidou of Greece 7-6 (7), 6-7 (1), 6-4.

Mara Santangelo of Italy rallied for a 6-4, 5-7, 6-2 win Monday over Jarmila Gajdosova in the opening round of the Pattaya Women’s Open. Peng Shuai of China cruised past Hsieh Su-wei 6-1, 6-2. Sania Mirza of India struggled in the first set, then eased past Catalina Castano 7-6 (1), 6-0. Wild card Alicia Molik of Australia defeated Kateryna Bondarenko 6-2, 6-2.

Justine Henin will not play for Belgium in the Fed Cup against the United States, joining Kim Clijsters on the sideline. “With my advisers, we decided not to play in 2007,” Henin said Sunday on her Web site. “We took the decision because of the very heavy calendar.” The United States and Belgium play the first round on April 21-22 in Delray Beach, Fla.

Top-ranked Maria Sharapova rallied from a set down to cruise past Japan’s Ai Sugiyama 4-6, 6-0, 6-1 on Friday and advance to the Pan Pacific Open semifinals. Sugiyama broke Sharapova to win the first set but was no match for the No. 1-seeded player from then on. “It’s never easy against Sugiyama,” Sharapova said.

Hall of Famers Jim Courier, John McEnroe and Mats Wilander will compete in August when the International Tennis Hall of Fame hosts a Champions Series tournament for the first time. The series is for players who are over 30 years old and not full-time members of the ATP circuit. The trio will join five other players in a five-day singles, round-robin tourney from Aug.