Tennis: Ivanisevic to play in Auckland

Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic will play at next January's Heinneken Open in Auckland.

The tall left-handed Croat, ranked number 13 in the world, competed in Auckland last year when he was a first-round loser.

His confirmed participation further strengthens the field, which now includes former world No 1 Marat Safin of Russia, Britain's Greg Rusedski, Heineken Open champion Dominik Hrbaty of Slovakia and Russian star Anna Kournikova.

The 30-year-old Ivanisevic will play in Doha and Auckland in the lead-up to the Australian Open.

This afternoon, he will play Juan Carlos Ferrero in a semi-final match at the Masters Cup in Sydney, after being beaten last night by Yevgeny Kafelnikov 6-3, 6-4.

Kafelnikov, Lleyton Hewitt, and Sebastien Grosjean are already through to the semi-finals.