U.S. Fed Cup team eager and ready for final vs. Belarus

It's unlikely that a lot of Americans can say they've traveled to Minsk for a work trip. For the U.S. Fed Cup team, the trip overseas is going smoothly as they get set to face Belarus in this weekend's final.

The Americans are led by world No. 10 CoCo Vandeweghe and US Open champion Sloane Stephens, along with Shelby Rogers and Alison Riske.

"So far Minsk has been nice," Rogers said. "The hotel is great, the people have been very friendly. It's a little bit cold, we're all bundled up everyday. We'd had great practices, great days, and no matter where we are it's fun being together. We're having a good time and we're excited for the weekend."

The team beat Germany in Hawaii and the Czech Republic in Orlando. For their first away tie in 2017, they arrived early, and have had a lot of fun training and hanging out together.

"It's actually really fun because obviously when you play week-to-week you don't really get the chance to hang out with your girls," Stephens said. "This week is fun because we get to do all kinds of stuff together."

Vandeweghe branched out beyond the courts and the hotel to visit the World War II museum.

"It was the closest thing available. I really enjoyed myself," she said. "It was cool to see it from a different perspective. But I heard we can rent tanks and take them out a ride which I really want to do..."

The team is motivated and eager for the task at hand, despite the timing of the tie so late in the season. It's no secret how brutally long the season is, with just a few weeks for down time in November and December.

"I feel like at this point in the season if anyone is in contention of playing in a Fed Cup final they don't really mind what time of year it is," Riske said. "Obviously, it does interact with the offseason, but I think all of us that are here are extremely excited and honored to be a part of it no matter what time of the season it is."

Vandeweghe has had one of the most loaded seasons, with her career-best semifinal runs at the Australian Open and US Open propelling her toward the Top 10. She also finished second at the WTA Elite Trophy in Zhuhai.

"It's very difficult to stay motivated after the US Open because it's such a big tournament for the American players," Vandeweghe said. "I didn't even know Top 10 was capable from ranking points and all the stuff that goes with the WTA rankings—which I don't really understand, but it's not my job to understand.

"I'm just really happy to finish off my year with these girls and playing in the finals right now."

The U.S. will face a young Belarusian team made up of Aryna Sabalenka, Aliaskandra Sasnovich, Vera Lapko and Lidziya Marozava. The home team is notably missing two-time Grand Slam champion, Victoria Azarenka. But the Americans are missing someone major too, former world No. 1 doubles star Bethanie Mattek-Sands.

Vandeweghe now slides into the leadership role in both singles and doubles, but for her, it's always going to be a team effort.

"It's a team aspect so it's definitely not an individual moment," she said. "All egos aside, I'm here for these girls in whatever capacity it may be this week."

Belarus is playing in its first-ever Fed Cup final, while the United States will try to win its first title since 2000. The tie will be shown live on the Tennis Channel starting at 6:30 a.m. on Saturday.