France without 3 players vs Austria in Davis Cup

Injury-plagued France will have to overcome the absence of its three highest-ranked players when it takes on Austria in the first round of the Davis Cup.

The 21st-ranked Richard Gasquet pulled out with a sore right shoulder following his semifinal exit at the Dubai Championships last week. The team is already without 11th-ranked Gael Monfils (hand) and 17th-ranked Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (groin) for the indoor clay-court series, which starts on Friday.

France captain Guy Forget said Tuesday that "it's going to be a tough match. Even for us as last year's finalists, every match is a great challenge."