At the Fed Cup by BNP Paribas 2006 Asia/Oceania Zone Group II qualifying event in Seoul, Hong Kong produced convincing 2-0 wins against Singapore and Kazakhstan behind the one-two punch of Tong Ka Po and Venise Chan earlier this afternoon to guarantee promotion to Group I next year, regardless of the outcome against Syria tomorrow.

Both Singapore and Kazakhstan beat Syria 2-0 and will therefore have to fight it out in their final match on Friday for the remaining promotion spot.

Captain of the Hong Kong Fed Cup team, Jeremy Pong, said from the Korean capital: "Ka Po and Venise played well today. Although their opponents barely put up a fight, they kept their concentration and got the job done. I probably will field either Chun Wing or Geraldine for one of the singles spots tomorrow."

The territory will therefore return to Group I action for the first time since 2002, when a Tong Ka Po-led team defeated both Thailand and the Philippines to finish third behind Japan and China in the round robins. Hong Kong thus avoided the relegation playoffs and successfully retained its Group I status that year.

Meanwhile, Pool A of the Asia/Oceania Zone Group I qualifying, also taking place in Seoul, saw Uzbekistan go down 2-0 against both Australia and Korea earlier today and, therefore, will have to contend with the relegation playoffs to avoid the drop. The outcome of the Aussie-Korean match-up on Friday will determine which nation would advance to the promotion playoff against the winner of Pool B. The losing team will join Uzbekistan in the relegation playoffs.

On Saturday, the winners of each pool will play off against each other to determine which one team will be promoted to the World Group II Play-offs in July 2006. The nation in last position in Pool A will play off, on Saturday, against the nation in third position in Pool B and the nation in second position in Pool A will play off against the nation in last position in Pool B to determine which two nations will be relegated to Group II in 2007.

Elsewhere, in Pool B, the Philippines suffered 2-0 losses to both New Zealand and India this afternoon, and will definitely need to contest the relegation playoffs to stay afloat. Having defeated the Kiwis 2-0, Chinese Taipei is battling Sania Mirza's India for Pool B supremacy just as we speak. In order for the tie to stay alive, Asian Championships 2001 semifinalist, Hsieh Su-Wei (WTA No. 129), must beat world No. 37 Sania Mirza at number one singles after Shikha Uberoi (No.183) had earlier saw off Chan Yung-Jan (No. 173), 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, first up at the two spot.

Hsieh Su-Wei and Sania Mirza had met once before, at the 12th Mitsubishi Lancer Int'l Jr Championships in 2001, when the then Taiwanese wunderkind prevailed in a three-set semifinal, 7-5, 3-6, 6-1.

Unless New Zealand can upset India tomorrow, and likewise the Philippines against Chinese Taipei, the winner of this Taiwan-India face-off will go on to meet the winner between Australia and Korea in the resulting battle for the right to contest the World Group II Playoffs in July 2006.

See This Week's Special Edition – Players choose new look for Fed Cup (ITFtennis.com, 20 Apr 2006)

Results
Fed Cup by BNP Paribas 2006
Asia/Oceania Zone Group II
Olympic Park, Seoul, Korea (Outdoor Hardcourts)
19-21 April 2006

Hong Kong defeated Singapore   2 - 0

R-1 Tong Ka Po (HKG) d. Vanessa Boey (SIN) 6-0 6-0
R-2 Venise Chan (HKG) d. Lee Wei-Ping (SIN) 6-3 6-0
R-3 Tong Ka Po/Venise Chan (HKG) v. Cassandra Ng/Lee Wei-Ping – DNP

Hong Kong defeated Kazakhstan   2 – 0

R-1 Tong Ka Po (HKG) d. Yekaterina Morozova (KAZ) 6-0 6-0
R-2 Venise Chan (HKG) d. Mariya Kovaleva (KAZ) 6-0 6-4
R-3 Tong Ka Po/Venise Chan (HKG) v. Yekaterina Morozova/Mariya Kovaleva – DNP