Kournikova has yet to confirm whether she will play doubles as well as singles. "Her people have, not surprisingly, been very secretive," Palmer said.
He is not holding his breath, but there is a chance Kournikova could play doubles with Spaniard Conchita Martinez.
"Conchita is very keen to play doubles, but until she gets here next Friday, we will not know what she has planned."
Martinez has asked to play her first round singles on the Tuesday (January 1) - the same day Kournikova will make her first appearance at Stanley St.
"This is shaping as 'terrific Tuesday' - no wonder it is already a sellout," said Palmer, who confirmed Kournikova will play the second match of the day on the main court.
Martinez, the tournament's fourth seed, and unseeded Kournikova are set for second-day action, so top seeds Angeles Montolio (Spain) and Henrieta Nagyova (Slovakia) seem certain to play on opening day.
Defending champion and sixth seed Meilen Tu (United States) is another who could face early action.
But even before she hits a ball at the tournament proper, Kournikova will join the seeded players at a media function next Saturday, followed by the official draw - with Jonah Lomu lending a hand.
Kournikova and Lomu will also be part of an Adidas-hosted promotional event.
Kournikova will be involved in a private ASB Bank-hosted promotion on an indoor court.
While some uncertainty remains over the composition of the field for the women's doubles, Heineken Open director Graham Pearce has no such concerns with the men.
The world's top pairing of Todd Woodbridge and Jonas Bjorkman are set to take the top seeding here for the January 7-12 tournament after yesterday's confirmation that Australian Woodbridge will play the Vodafone-sponsored doubles.
With another top pairing - American Rick Leach and South African Ellis Ferreira - already confirmed (and now set to take the second seeding), the doubles promise to provide real entertainment, especially in the four night sessions from the Monday to the Thursday.
Pearce said the appearance of stars Marat Safin and Goran Ivanisevic in the Open and Martinez and Kournikova in the Classic, have already guaranteed the biggest return yet for Auckland Tennis.
"Finals day [January 12] at the Heineken Open is already sold out. Ticket sales for the Wednesday have been the slowest, but even that is more than 90 per cent sold."
While all covered seats have been sold for the men's tournament, the Yock stand still has some seats left. There are only a couple of unsold corporate boxes for the Heineken Open and one for the ASB Bank Classic.
* The Herald has received 35 bids to buy a place in the pro-am featuring Kournikova. Interest and bids have come from Australia and the United States, as well as New Zealand. The
Anna tender page
has had more than 5000 visits.
The leading bid stands at $3300. Terms and conditions can be found on the site. Bids close at noon on Monday.
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