One of this year's standouts from the Heineken Tennis Open has pulled out of January's event in Auckland.
World number 42 American Jack Sock, as a wildcard defeated third seed Tommy Haas and reached the quarter finals.
But he won't play until February as he recovers from surgery.
Tournament director Karl Budge told Radiosport the next player after the ranking cutoff of 60 will come straight in, and it's not overly disruptive.
Meanwhile, 2010 Roland Garros winner Francesca Schiavone has been confirmed as the final wildcard for the ASB Classic.
