Ana Ivanovic: I want to win in Auckland again

Ana Ivanovic in action on her way to winning the 2014 ASB Classic final. Photo / Richard Robinson

Ana Ivanovic is back in town - with a simple goal.

The Serbian tennis star, who arrived in Auckland in the early hours of Thursday morning, wants to leave the Queen City with her perfect record at the ASB Classic still intact.

She has yet to taste defeat here, winning all five of her matches in last year's tournament, including a thrilling three-set final over Venus Williams.

"Having won this tournament in the past, I obviously have very fond memories of playing [here]," said Ivanovic. "Of course, I would be delighted to repeat my success from 2014 and win again. That's the plan!"

Ivanovic's preparations suffered a slight hiccup, as her flight into Auckland was delayed for almost two hours. The 28-year-old was meant to touch down late last night, but didn't arrive until almost 1:30am after a late departure from Singapore.

But Ivanovic, who travels with a large entourage of coaching and support staff, still has plenty of time to prepare for the tournament.

She is unlikely to play her first match until Tuesday, and has the jump on her main rivals Caroline Wozniacki and Williams, who don't arrive until the 1st and 2nd of January respectively. Aside from the two marquee names, the main draw also boasts the likes of former Grand Slam champion Svetlana Kuznetsova and promising American Sloane Stephens. The overall depth of the field is reflected in players like Lauren Davis (2015 ASB Classic semifinalist) and Francesca Schiavone (2010 French Open champion) having to qualify to make the main draw.

"The field is going to be strong and it will give me the opportunity to play some high-quality matches before the Australian Open," said Ivanovic. "I'm delighted to come back to Auckland. The tournament itself is extremely well organised, everything runs smoothly and it's definitely one of my favourite events on the WTA calendar - no wonder it attracts a lot of other top players."

Ivanovic - who has listed her goals for 2016 as winning another grand slam and getting a medal in Rio - also plans to do some quickfire sightseeing while she is in Auckland, after enjoying a helicopter ride and a beach visit on her last trip in 2014.

The ASB Classic commences on Monday, with qualifying from Saturday morning.