Great Britain will hope they are not blown away by a Romanian storm as they try to end a 24-year wait to reach the elite level of the Fed Cup. Preparations for the World Group II play-off in the Black Sea resort of Constanta have been disrupted by high winds, rain and even snow, making outdoor practice hard at the Tenis Club IDU.

The forecast is better for the weekend, when a British team led by Johanna Konta will take on a strong Romanian line-up. The captain Anne Keothavong said: “It hasn’t been ideal. Yesterday was a complete wash-out, we were practising in the indoor bubble but it’s the same for both teams. It’s cold, it’s wet, the conditions will be heavy, but we’re ready.”

Romania are favourites on home soil and on their best surface, with world No5 Simona Halep contesting the opening rubber in her home city against Heather Watson. If Britain are to win they will need Konta, ranked seventh after her recent Miami Open triumph, to be on top form. Clay is not her best surface but a win over 33rd-ranked Irina-Camelia Begu in the second rubber is a must if Britain are to stand a chance of pulling off a shock.

The Fed Cup is very much the poor relation to the Davis Cup in terms of profile, and Keothavong’s predecessor Judy Murray resigned last year partly out of frustration with the format.

Britain have been trying to escape the Europe/Africa Zone since 1993 without success.

Murray twice led them to similar play-offs against Sweden and Argentina in 2012 and 2013 respectively but defeats sent them back to square one.

Former British No1 Keothavong has sought advice from Murray and Davis Cup captain Leon Smith and is optimistic her side can exceed expectations. She said: “Judy has been a really good mentor for me. I’ve picked her brain on lots of subjects and she’s got a lot of knowledge and has been willing to help, which has been great for me.

“I’m just as desperate to get out of this group, there’s nothing more I would like to see than Great Britain in a World Group and that’s something that’s a possibility.

“We’ve got a fantastic group of gifted and talented players and they’re capable of scoring big wins on the big stages. I think the Romanians will feel the pressure and it’s up to the players and all of us to take advantage of that.”

Watson has had a difficult season, dropping to 113 in the rankings, but has an excellent record in Fed Cup and only lost 12 games in four matches in the group stage in February. She said: “I really enjoy the team environment, especially having everyone at the side of the court, cheering me on and backing me. It’s different from a regular tournament and I think I really thrive in it and that shows in my results.”

The other two team members, Laura Robson and Jocelyn Rae, will, if needed, play the final doubles rubber on Sunday against Monica Niculescu and Sorana Cirstea.

Robson continues to make slow progress following her long absence with wrist problems but will be courtside with her tambourine cheering on Konta and Watson.

The Romanian team are captained by former world number one Ilie Nastase, who played up to his reputation by asking Keothavong for her number while they posed for pictures at the draw, leaving the British captain looking rather uncomfortable.

He was upbeat about his team’s chances, saying: “I’m confident, that’s why I’m here. I think we are going to win. My girls are in good form and we will see.”

Halep has not played a match in Constanta since her junior days, and she added: “It’s amazing to have the chance to play again here and also in this club, the owner of the club helped me in the past. It will be a little bit emotional but I hope to do my best tomorrow.”

Maria Sharapova should not be fast-tracked into next month’s French Open as she returns from a doping ban, insists her Polish rival Agnieszka Radwanska.

Maria Sharapova should not be allowed a wildcard entry into the French Open, believes Agnieszka Radwanska. Photograph: Thais Llorca/EPA

With the double French Open champion Sharapova currently unranked, all eyes will be on the French Tennis Federation (FFT) next month when it decides whether or not to hand the 30-year-old a wildcard into the tournament.

Sharapova makes her comeback to the WTA Tour after 15 months out in Stuttgart next week, after gaining a wildcard, and has also been given invites to play in Madrid and Rome.

Roland Garros organisers will be wrestling with the moral conundrum surrounding a wildcard - or free entry into the French Open - given that Sharapova is the biggest draw card in women’s tennis right now, and arguably much needed given the absence of Serena Williams who earlier this week announced her pregnancy.

Regardless, Radwanska believes entry to the year’s second grand slam tournament would be a step too far. “Now in Germany, next in Spain, but so far she hasn’t been invited to play at slams in Paris and London and in my opinion that’s how it should remain,” world No8 Radwanska told Poland’s sports daily Przeglad Sportowy. “She should win her place thanks to good results.”

Sharapova was originally banned for two years following a positive test for the newly-banned drug meldonium at the 2016 Australian Open but the sanction was reduced to 15 months by the court of arbitration for sport.

Last week she criticised the International Tennis Federation (ITF) for not doing enough to warn her that meldonium - a product she had used legally throughout her career to combat health issues - had been added to the World Anti-Doping Agency’s list of banned substances in late 2015.

Sharapova, 30, is likely to receive a lukewarm reception in Stuttgart next week with several players, including another former world No1 Caroline Wozniacki, also questioning whether she should have received a wildcard.

Men’s world No1 Andy Murray has also voiced his disapproval about the return of Sharapova who was caught out by the sport’s anti-doping laws after failing to realise that meldonium, previously legal, had been added to the banned list.

“I’m not hiding my views. I think the same as Andy Murray,” Radwanska, who has beaten Sharapova only twice in 15 attempts, told the newspaper. “This kind of entry into the tournament should be available only for players who were dropped in the ranking due to injury, illness or other random accident. Not for those suspended for doping. Maria should rebuild her career in a different way, beginning with smaller events. She wouldn’t have a chance for [a wildcard] from my hands [if I was a tournament director].”

With the main draw deadline passed Sharapova’s hopes of playing in the tournament she won in 2012 and 2014 could rest with FFT president Bernard Giudicelli who last month admitted the decision was “complicated”. A decision is expected on May 15.

Playing through the qualifying tournament is also a possibility for Sharapova, although in order to have a high enough ranking for the 1 May deadline to enter that she would probably have to win the Stuttgart title. The French Open starts on 28 May.