The French tennis federation has almost decided where to hold its Davis Cup final against Switzerland, but is unsure about the surface, according to French reports.
The likely choice is the Stade Pierre Mauroy in Lille, which has 26,000 seats. A stadium in Nice, with 10,000 seats, is also a possibility.
But the team has not yet decided whether to put the indoor tie on hard courts or clay, with both teams capable of excelling on both surfaces.
For Switzerland, Federer is a French Open champion with four finals at the clay court major, while Wawrinka's favorite surface is clay and he won the Monte Carlo Masters this year. However, Federer has multiple hard court majors and Wawrinka is the Australian Open champion.
For the French, the speed of hard courts benefits Tsonga, but he has also reached the French Open semifinals. Both Monfils and Gasquet are suited to clay but can play more effectively and aggressively when adjusting to hard courts, as shown by Monfils reaching the U.S. Open quarterfinals where he held two match points against Federer before collapsing in the fifth set.
"I do not believe the choice of surface is very important. What will make the difference is the desire of the players," said Tsonga.
The choice of stadium is expected to be announced in a week.