By TERRY MADDAFORD
Graham Pearce, chief executive of Auckland Tennis and a member of the ATP Tour executive, will not target the really big names when he turns up at next week's US Open, but he does have a wish-list of some of the world's best players for January's event at Stanley St.
While world No 1 Lleyton Hewitt was a "no chance" because of his commitment to the New South Wales Open in Sydney, and Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras would almost certainly be at the annual exhibition at Melbourne's Kooyong courts, Pearce hoped to again attract other topliners to the January 6-11 Heineken Open in Auckland.
Pearce said he would start with a long list which would then be whittled down.
"I have always aimed to get a quality field rather than just going for one or two really big names," Pearce said. "There are players in the world's top 20 who we would like to see competing here. It is a case of getting players with a reasonably high ranking and those with whom the public can relate.
"In our favour again will be the proximity of our tournament to the Australian Open and the fact it is played on the same surface and with similar balls."
Pearce said he assumed popular drawcard Goran Ivanisevic would not be available because of injury, but he hoped that Briton Greg Rusedski, who beat Jerome Golmard in this year's final, would return to defend the title.
He also hoped David Nalbandian, who lost to Michel Kratochvil in the Stanley St quarter-finals but went on to finish runner-up to Hewitt at Wimbledon and won the ATP tournament in Portugal, would return.
"He is the sort of player we could be looking at," Pearce said.
He has not discounted Michael Chang as another possibility: "He is always good value and enjoys playing here."
While Pearce will combine ATP meetings with his search for players, Richard Palmer, who directs the women's ASB Bank Classic which will run from December 30 to January 4, will be going all out in his efforts to sign players.
But he, like Pearce, will return from New York without firm commitments.
"No one makes any decision before October, but at least we will come back with a list of possibilities," Pearce said.
Given some encouraging results in recent times, Anna Kournikova could be high on Palmer's list. He might also target players such as Monica Seles and Martina Hingis who might fancy Auckland as the starting point for the year before heading to Australia.
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