BERMUDA will field what will arguably be their strongest-ever women's tennis team when they travel to Cuba to compete in the Federation Cup later this month.

Danielle Paynter, Zarah DeSilva, Sasha Fisher and Tara Lambert will make up a team with a rare combination of youth and no little experience as they take on some of the best in the region.

Team captain Kelly Holland is confident her young charges can build on the progress of the last two years when they take to the hard courts in Havana from May 13-19.

"I have a good feeling about this year," said Holland. "The girls are all playing a lot of tennis at school and are used to playing away from home, so there shouldn't be too many nerves."

Last year in Antigua, Bermuda recorded the best Fed Cup performance in their history with an eighth-place finish in the 15-nation tournament in Antigua.

They achieved that result without Paynter, one of the stars of Bermudian female tennis, who was unavailable due to academic commitments at York University in Canada.

Holland said she was delighted to have Paynter back on the team this year.

"Having Danielle back will be a big boost to the team," said Holland. "She's very fit and she's been playing some really good tennis. She has a great way about her.

"She's home right now and she's been hitting every day and playing against guys. James Collieson has helped by hitting with her.

"Last time she was home she beat Donna Bradshaw handily, so we know she's playing well because Donna is ranked number one in Bermuda."

Paynter is the only team member currently on the island and the other three will all fly straight from their schools overseas to Cuba.

DeSilva is studying at Saddlebrook in Florida and Tara Lambert at South Carolina State University. Both have represented their schools in competitive tennis. Fisher is at Millfields in England, a school renowned for its sporting excellence.

Fisher made an impressive debut in last year's Fed Cup and at 14 years-old, she was the youngest player to represent the island in senior international tennis.

"Sasha was fabulous in Antigua last time and I'm hoping she'll do even better this year," said Holland. "Last year she was very mature and handled it all very well. Just being a year older and having played a lot in England should help her.

"When she was in Bermuda, Sasha was top of her age group and there were not a lot of kids she could play. Now she's playing much more tennis and there are kids at her school who can challenge her."

Having four players spread out around the world has made team training sessions impossible, but Holland said there had been plenty of efforts to nurture team spirit.

"I have asked to get them to try to talk to each other and they have been in regular contact by e-mail, which is good for team spirit," said Holland.

The format of the tournament will be the same as last year - four round-robin groups of four countries and then play-offs for final position.

Last year, Bermuda's Davis Cup team competed in Cuba where the heat took its toll on the players.

"The heat is always definitely a problem," said Holland. "We think it gets hot in Bermuda, but right now it's like August in Bermuda and we're not used to that yet. All we can do is make sure that everybody's got enough water."

The team will get little time to acclimatise, added the captain.

"We will get there on Monday (May 13) and we will play our first match on Tuesday," said Holland. "Normally, we like to get there a day or two early. But that is a bit of a financial strain and there are not flights to Cuba every day, so this is the way we had to do it.

"I don't think it will hurt us. I have seen countries get there the night before and just go out and play."

Next Monday will see the start of the first major domestic tournament of the year, when the Heineken Open takes place at the Tennis Stadium, with finals day slated for May 18.