Tennis: Open confirms Safin, hopes for Kournikova

By TERRY MADDAFORD

Big-serving Russian former world No 1 Marat Safin will be back in Auckland in January as the major drawcard for next year's Open.

Heineken Open director Graham Pearce confirmed yesterday that last year's United States Open champion, who last appeared in Auckland as an 18-year-old in 1999, will play in the singles at the tournament at the ASB Bank Tennis Centre in Stanley St from January 7 to 12.

But hopes that Anna Kournikova will be in Auckland a week before her countryman for the ASB Bank Classic remain just that.

"We try every year to get not only Kournikova but also other top players here," said tournament director Richard Palmer. "At this stage I would say it is not impossible but not highly probable she will be here.

"To be fair, we have had contact with her agents and they have not dismissed it. The problem we face is the standoff the WTA had over prizemoney for tier one and two events.

"Until that was sorted out late last week, players had not handed in their commitment cards for 2002."

Tier one tournaments carry the most ranking points and prizemoney. They scale down through the next two levels. The Auckland women's tournament is a tier three event.

Palmer said: "We have to wait until three top-20 players or one top-10 player are confirmed for the tier three Gold Coast tournament, which is being played at the same time as the ASB Classic [December 31 to January 5] before we will get any confirmations."

With neither Safin nor Kournikova committed to the Hopman Cup in Perth, Palmer conceded that the chances of snaring Kournikova might be improved.

The Hopman Cup, an annual teams event, has already robbed the Auckland tournament of this year's runner-up, Paola Suarez, who will team with Guillermo Coria for Argentina, and Spaniard Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, who has opted to join team-mate Tommy Robredo in Western Australia.

Monica Seles is also ruled out as she will play for the United States with Jan Michael Gambill.

Safin will be a star attraction at the Open.

He won his first-round clash in 1999 but went out in the second, beaten by New Zealand No 1 Brett Steven.

Last year, Safin fired down an amazing 921 aces, at an average of nearly 10 a match. He also picked up a record he would probably be happy to forget: more than 50 broken rackets.

Pete Sampas once said of Safin: "He serves harder than I did at 19 and he's more powerful than I was."

On November 20 last year, Safin reached the world No 1 spot, and went on to finish the year as the world No 2-ranked player behind Brazilian Gustavo Kuerten in the ATP champions race.

He is now seventh in the world, just behind fellow Russian Yevgeny Kafelnikov, but is still to qualify for a place in the field for the Masters Cup in Sydney next month.