By TERRY MADDAFORD
French-based Eden Marama has been handed a wildcard into the main draw for next month's international women's tournament in Auckland.
Seventeen-year-old Marama, who moved from Wellington to Paris to further her tennis career, has been rewarded for an outstanding year on the International Tennis Federation's juniors tour and
senior circuit.
She will go straight into the 32-strong main draw for the January 5-10 ASB Classic.
Marama, who trains at Bob Brett Academy, has a WTA singles ranking of 500, after starting the year unranked. She has gone as high as No 23 on the ITF junior rankings.
In January she reached the quarter-finals of the singles and semifinals of the doubles at the Australian Open junior tournament.
As well as winning ITF US$10,000 ($15,400) titles in Dublin and Nantes this year, she reached two other finals. She is the first New Zealand woman to win a singles title since 1999.
Marama also won four ITF doubles titles with older sister Paula.
"She is worthy of a place in the main draw," Classic director Richard Palmer said yesterday.
"With the game she has, she is capable of winning at this level."
With Marama receiving one wildcard, Palmer must now consider his options before handing another New Zealander a main draw spot.
Next week's national residential championships might have a bearing as to whether Shelley Stephens, Ilke Gers, Leanne Baker, Paula Marama or Marina Erakovic gets that nod.
Four New Zealanders are set to receive wildcards into the January 3-4 qualifying tournament.
"A large number of factors are taken into account before wildcards are given out," Palmer said. "The performances by New Zealand players over the past six months have been closely monitored."
There is a strong possibility the Marama sisters will also play doubles at the tournament.
The top seed for the singles will be world No 14 Paola Suarez, ahead of No 15 Jelena Dokic.
Defending champion Eleni Daniilidou will also be seeded.
Unseeded American Lindsay Lee-Waters will also go into the main draw following her win in the US$50,000 Bernstein Challenger in Florida last weekend.
Lee-Waters joins Terryn Ashley and Julia Vakulenko as automatic main draw players after victories in three specified WTA tournaments in recent months.
Ashley and Abigail Spears won the doubles at this year's Classic.
