Corretja to lead Spain in Davis Cup final

Alex Corretja will lead Spain's Davis Cup challenge in next month's final against Australia but former French Open champion Carlos Moya has missed out on a place in the four-man squad.

Corretja, the number one Spanish singles player, will be joined by Juan Carlos Ferrero, Albert Costa and Juan Balcells in the team announced by captain Javier Duarte on Friday at the Tennis Masters Series event in Paris.

Ferrero and Costa are in contention for the second singles spot.

Moya, whose career has slumped since he won Roland Garros two years ago, said he is "very disappointed" to miss out.

"It was a very difficult decision to make, but we believe we have chosen the team that has the best chance of beating Australia," said Duarte.

"We talked to Carlos about our decision and it is understandable that he is disappointed."

The Davis Cup final will be played on clay in Barcelona from December 8-10.

Duarte said the decision on his second singles player would depend largely on the composition of the Australian team.

Defending champions Australia have named a preliminary squad of nine which will be trimmed to four for the final.

Lleyton Hewitt and Wimbledon finalist Pat Rafter are almost certain to play singles with Mark Woodforde and Sandon Stolle set to play doubles.

Corretja, Ferrero and Costa have all made the last eight of the Paris tournament, while Moya lost in the first round to Frenchman Fabrice Santoro.