LONDON -- Sweden was going to have enough trouble against Australia in its Davis Cup semifinal. Now the Swedes have to take on their champion-laden opponent without two stars.

Sweden, which is missing Magnus Norman and Nicklas Kulti, will face an Australian team boasting U.S. Open winners present and past, Lleyton Hewitt and Patrick Rafter.

Thomas Enqvist, Jonas Bjorkman, Magnus Larsson and Thomas Johansson will face the Australian team, which also features Wayne Arthurs and doubles specialist Todd Woodbridge.

Australia was runner-up to Spain last year.

"They've got two really good singles players, so we're definitely the underdogs," said Bjorkman, who will face U.S Open champion Hewitt on Friday. "But you've got to look at the strength of this team -- we've got four guys who could play in any position."

The Netherlands will play France in the other semifinal for a place in the Nov. 30-Dec. 2 final.

There are also seven world group qualifying round ties and six regional playoffs this weekend. The United States-India world group tie was postponed until next month because of the terrorist attacks last week.

The tie for the Asia/Oceania zone group 2 final between Lebanon and Taiwan in the Lebanese city of Yarze, was also postponed for undisclosed reasons.

Sweden captain Carl-Axel Hageskog preferred Bjorkman to the higher-ranked Enqvist in the singles on the rebound ace surface of Sydney's International Tennis Center.

Johansson, the top-ranked Swede at No. 18, will play Australian No. 2 Pat Rafter, a two-time U.S. Open titlist.

"That may be the weakness of the Australian team -- they've got two players for the singles, but if something happens (to either of them) I think Sweden looks stronger."

The winner of the best-of-five match semifinal earns the right to be the host for the final. Australia has not played host to a final since current captain John Fitzgerald led the team over Sweden in 1986.

"We've done too much, come through some very tough matches to get here," Hewitt said. "If I can play like I did in (the quarterfinals) Brazil, I think we'll win."

In Rotterdam, France will be without top player Sebastien Grosjean, a semifinalist at both the French and Australian Opens this year. Grosjean told French captain Guy Forget he could not face a long match so soon after recovering from an ankle injury.

Forget's team consists of Arnaud Clement and Cedric Pioline in the singles, and Fabrice Santoro and Nicolas Escude in the doubles.

With 1996 Wimbledon winner Richard Krajicek having failed to get fit in time, the Dutch will play with Paul Haarhuis, Jan Siemerink, Sjeng Schalken and Raemon Sluiter. It's the same Dutch team that defeated Germany in the quarterfinal in April.

In the world group qualifying round draws it's Ecuador vs. Britain, Italy vs. Croatia, Czech Republic vs. Romania, Belgium vs. Morocco, Spain vs. Uzbekistan, Argentina vs. Belarus, and Slovakia vs. Chile.

In the Euro/Africa zone, Austria plays host to Ukraine, and Slovenia travels to Zimbabwe in the group 1, third round playoff. In the zone's group 2, third round ties, Luxembourg plays Israel and Denmark travels to Greece. Mexico plays host to Peru in the American zone group 1, third round playoff while China travels to Indonesia for the group 1, third round playoff of the Asia/Oceania group.