MONTREAL -- Eugenie Bouchard will headline Canada's women's tennis team in Fed Cup action against Slovakia.
The Montreal native was named to the squad Wednesday, along with Francoise Abanda of Montreal, Sharon Fichman of Toronto, and Aleksandra Wozniak of Blainville.
Canada will play Slovakia in the World Group II playoff tie, April 16 and 17, indoors on red clay in Bratislava.
"We know the team that we're bringing to Slovakia has what it takes to be among the top 16 countries in the world," Canada's Fed Cup captain Sylvain Bruneau said in a release. "We have worked hard over the past few years to earn our place among the elite nations, and we will do everything we can to win this tie and keep our place in World Group. We have a tough challenge ahead against a very good team from Slovakia, but we are ready to face it."
Canada faces a team that has played in World Group II since 2006. Slovakia reached the Fed Cup semifinals in 2013 and won the title in 2002 when they played as Czechoslovakia.
For their last tie against Australia, the Slovaks were represented by Anna Karolina Schmiedlova (No. 31), Dominika Cibulkova (No. 53), Jana Cepelova (No. 121), and Daniela Hantuchova (No. 183).
Bouchard missed Canada's tie against Belarus in February. She holds a Fed Cup record of 11-and-4.
Ranked no. 45 in the world, the 22-year-old has reached two WTA singles finals this season, and is kicking off her clay court season this week in Charleston.
Abanda is making her fourth appearance for Canada. Against Romania last April, the 18-year-old earned the biggest win of her career against then world No. 33 Irina-Camelia Begu.
This is Fichman's 17th Fed Cup nomination and she holds a 23-9 record. In Columbia in February of 2013, she won five matches in singles and doubles, a performance that earned her a nomination for the Fed Cup Heart award.
Wozniak, 28, is the veteran of the Canadian squad. She returned to the team in February and won the 40th match of her Fed Cup career in Quebec City against Govortsova.
This will be the third Fed Cup meeting between Canada and Slovakia. Canada won the last tie 3-1 in Quebec City in 2014.