Organisers of the ASB Bank Tennis Classic breathed a sigh of relief today as star attraction Anna Kournikova battled her way through to the second round against Zimbabwe's Cara Black.
Kournikova struggled in the early rounds against Black and at one stage was down 1-4 in the first set before fighting her way back up to win 7-6.
Playing in extremely hot conditions, Kournikova rapidly got into her stride and went on to defeat black 6-2 in the second set to win the match.
Meanwhile, defending champion Meilen Tu was eliminated from the international women's tennis tournament here earlier today.