JOCELYN Rae continued her warm-up for this month's Fed Cup duties with Great Britain when he and her doubles partner Anna Smith booked a place in today's doubles final at the AEGON Pro Series with a 6-2, 6-3 win against their countrywomen Emma Hurst and Lauryn John-Baptiste. Rae got the nod from new captain Anne Keothavong alongside Johanna Konta, Heather Watson, Laura Robson for February's Europe/Africa Zone round robin matches in Estonia and looks to be in good form, even if her long-term English partner Smith cannot accompany her.
"I am obviously really excited to get the call-up for the Fed Cup and am keen to get as many matches as I can," Rae told Herald Sport. "Sadly I won't be playing with Anna at the Fed Cup but it is good because one of our coaches is here and we can do training alongside the matches. It has been going well for us and we feel a bit more match tight now.
"We weren't sure exactly how it would happen to be honest - we didn't know if either of us would get in so we just let Anne make the decision," she added. "Obviously it is a bit tricky and I am going to miss her. It will be different me playing with someone else but I think I could play with all three of them. I don't think Jo plays so much now that she has been doing so well in singles but I have no idea. Hopefully I get picked though!
"It will be different with Anne as captain but I am looking forward to it. Myself and Anna have played two years in a row now and I played the year before also. The crowd is nothing compared to the Davis Cup but there are a few different fan clubs who go out so it is good."
Rae, whose father's family hail from near Stirling, won a Commonwealth gold medal for Scotland in the mixed doubles at Delhi in 2010. Rae and Smith's other goals for the season include building their ranking back up after a disappointing Australian Open and making an impact in the slams. "Our rankings have dropped a little bit because we couldn't defend points at the Aussie Open," she said. "We just need a few more matches. We are confidence players and it is tricky at the start of the year to get a few matches. It is good to get a few in."
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