Wimbledon [ Images ] champion Maria Sharapova [ Images ] has been left out of Russia's [ Images ] Fed Cup first-round tie against Italy [ Images ] later this month because of her hectic tournament schedule.

Tennis Federation head and Fed Cup captain Shamil Tarpishchev, who had been to Miami [ Images ] to try and persuade the 17-year-old to join the squad, told Reuters: "I spoke to her father and we decided not to (include her).

"It is a burden to play all the tournaments in a row."

Tarpishchev named a squad of French Open [ Images ] champion Anastasia Myskina [ Images ], French and U.S. Open runner-up Elena Dementieva [ Images ], Elena Bovina and Dinara Safina [ Images ] to begin the defence of Russia's 2004 title.

He did not rule out selecting Sharapova later in the event, despite media speculation that the Florida-based teenager might switch her allegiance to the United States, where she has lived since childhood.