She said she would return and it looks as if Greek tennis star Eleni Daniilidou will be as good as her word in January.
After the world No 33 won her second consecutive ASB Classic title in Auckland last January, she said she "loved it here".
"I'm very happy tocome back."
Tournament director Richard Palmer last night confirmed that the 22-year-old is all but signed for the 2005 edition of the premier women's event.
And that means Daniilidou will be aiming to join Australian legend Yvonne Cawley as the only women to have won the title three straight years.
Cawley, then Goolagong, first won the old Benson & Hedges Open title in the 1972-73 season. She also won four doubles titles in all, although the timing and structure of the event were drastically different then.
Daniilidou dispatched Korean Yoon Jeong Cho 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (7-2) in the 2003 final and American Ashley Harkleroad 6-3, 6-2 last January.
The Greek player has pocketed US$1,128,295 ($1,643,765) in career earnings with three WTA singles titles and one doubles crown, at the US Open in New York last month.
Palmer has been in contact with Daniilidou recently and is delighted with her response.
"She wants to come and we'd love to have her here. I'm pretty confident," he said.
"She's got a bit of a following, she's popular with the public and it would be great."
Palmer said locker-room talk was crucial in attracting players to Auckland in the first week of each year.
"The word is you go to Auckland and can have a bit of fun," he said.
Palmer admitted a top 10 player was unlikely to be lured, but he hoped to secure some of the "four or five" players ranked between 10 and 20 that he has been in contact with.
Some players are ruled out by commitments to exhibition matches in Hong Kong, the Hopman Cup in Perth and other tournaments in Australia.
