The daughter of an Olympian, Lindsay Davenport learned early the privilege and responsibility of representing her country in competition.

So she remembers vividly her reaction to being invited to play on her first Fed Cup team.

“I had never been so nervous,” Davenport said Wednesday during a quick stop on Oahu to help promote the Fed Cup first-round match between the U.S. and Poland set for Feb. 6-7 in Kailua-Kona.

Still early in her climb to the top of the world tennis rankings, the 17-year-old made her debut for the U.S. team in 1993 to start a run of 20 appearances through 2008.

Along the way she spent 98 weeks at No. 1 and won six major championships (three singles, three doubles) and an Olympic gold medal in a career that earned her induction into the International Tennis Hall of Fame last year.

She also made Fed Cup appearances in a U.S. record 11 years, contributed to three titles and remains an ambassador for the team event.

“It was an amazing experience and something I look back and I’m so grateful that I had the opportunity,” said Davenport, whose father, Wink, played for the U.S. volleyball team in the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City.

“It was something that stayed with me throughout my career … how much more exciting it was and meaningful to be playing for someone other than yourself because in tennis it’s always just you out there.”

Davenport, now a Tennis Channel commentator, said her family owns a home in Kona and spends about three months out of the year in Hawaii with her husband, Jon Leach, and their four children.

So the first Fed Cup tie to be held in the state — which will be played at the Holua Resort at Mauna Loa Village in Kailua-Kona — brings together two of her passions.

“Geographically it makes the most sense ever for the players,” Davenport said. “They’re coming from the Australian Open, it’s the weekend after, so for players like Serena (Williams) there’s a huge incentive to come. She doesn’t have to travel from Australia all the way to the East Coast. It’s comparable climates and same court surface so players are very excited.”

U.S. captain Mary Joe Fernandez will announce the four-player roster no later than 10 days before the event and former world No. 1 Venus Williams, now ranked seventh, and No. 18 Madison Keys have made themselves available for selection. Both Williams sisters have been Fed Cup regulars throughout their careers and Davenport is hopeful Serena will join Venus in Hawaii.

Poland is expected to be led by No. 5 Agnieszka Radwanska in the World Group II first-round tie.

“I can’t imagine there’s going to be a lot more opportunities to see Venus Williams play pro tennis in Hawaii, a true legend,” Davenport said. “I think it’s fantastic for the people here to really get a chance to see the highest level of competition.”

Davenport spent much of her career at or near the top of the sport and credits her 1995 Fed Cup experience for helping set her path.

Billie Jean King took over as the U.S. captain that year and “truly my life changed,” Davenport said.

“I loved the pressure of playing for other people,” she said. “It was when I was playing for myself that sometimes I would struggle. Billie was always trying very hard for me to take the same mind-set from the team weeks to the individual tournaments.”

Clinging to King’s mantra of “pressure is a privilege,” Davenport went 26-3 in singles, 7-0 in doubles in Fed Cup play and helped the U.S. win the title in 1996, ’99 and 2000, which remains the last time the Americans won it all. Joining Davenport on the roster for the 1999 finals were Monica Seles, Venus Williams and Serena Williams, then a 17-year-old coming off her first U.S. Open title.

“To see her coming of age in that moment, I knew she was going to be great,” Davenport said.

The following year she teamed with Seles, Jennifer Capriati and Lisa Raymond to retain the Cup and the U.S. hasn’t held it since.

“It shouldn’t be the case that the U.S. hasn’t won it in 16 years,” Davenport said.

“We’ve seen the Czech team has won it the last few years and they work as a team and I think the U.S. is on the right path of trying to get back the trophy.”

FED CUP TICKETS

Tickets for the Fed Cup first round go on sale to the general public at 10 a.m. Friday and are available online at usta. com/fedcup or by calling 888-334-USTA (8782).