Tennis: Different agendas rule play

Top seed Amy Frazier will share centre stage with two 20-year-olds pursuing different agendas on the women's global circuit this year when the Auckland international tournament starts today.

While amiable American Frazier squares off against her compatriot and friend Laura Granville in the opening round of the ASB Classic, French player Marion Bartoli and Russian Lina Krasnoroutskaya kick off their 2005 campaigns hoping the year will end a title drought.

Bartoli, the No 5 seed, tackles American Abigail Spears, in a bid to secure her first title on the WTA Tour after hinting at bright things to come for the last couple of years.

Krasnoroutskaya, who was handed a wildcard ahead of leading New Zealand player Shelley Stephens, plays Hungarian Aniko Kapros at the start of a third attempt to pull herself back into the top echelon of the women's game.

Krasnoroutskaya's game has struggled under a litany of illness and injury issues since she was the world's top female junior at 15.

She began 2004 at world No 25 but had an interrupted year and has not played since August. She's now at No 141.

However, she is determined to give it another crack this year and join her band of high-achieving Russian compatriots.

Like No 41 Bartoli, her CV does not include a WTA singles title, although she reached the final of the Canadian Open in 2003.

Her performance will also be watched keenly by tournament director Richard Palmer, who copped criticism for handing the Russian a wildcard at Stephens' expense.

Stephens did not get past the first round of qualifying, losing in straight sets on Saturday.

Bartoli could have been in the Classic final last year, losing to American Ashley Harkleroad in the semifinal.

That was one of three WTA semifinals she reached in 2004 and she has been in the top 15 in doubles. The breakthrough might not be far away for the French Fed Cup final team member.

In terms of the heavy hitters in the US$140,000 (NZ$195,000) Classic field, today is something of an entree for Tuesday.

Five of the eight seeds will be in action tomorrow, along with New Zealand's young hope, Marina Erakovic, who won't know the identity of her first-round opponent until the final round of qualifying is finished at about lunchtime today.

She is relaxed about who she draws for her first WTA event.

But there is a school of thought that she might have benefited from facing a direct entry player who might be rusty in the first match of the first event of the year, rather than a qualifier who has gone through three games in as many days just to make the main draw.

Double defending champion and third seed Eleni Daniilidou, second seed and rising Serb talent Jelena Jankovic, fourth seed Shinobu Asagoe of Japan, and seventh and eighth seeds Kristina Brandi of Puerto Rico and Russian Alina Jidkova all kick off tomorrow.

For Frazier, one thing 15 years on the circuit have reinforced is the old saying about chickens and not counting them.

The world No 26 and 23-year-old Granville - nine years younger and 50 places lower at No 76 - have never met in a tournament, but Frazier said, "she's a good friend of mine and we practise together so it's going to be a tough match".

If Frazier did take a peek at the draw, she would probably surmise she is potentially in the easier half. By contrast, Jankovic, Daniilidou and Bartoli have to wend their way through some awkward traffic.

The possible speed bumps include Krasnoroutskaya, 2000 champion Anne Kremer and her fellow Luxembourger Claudine Schaul - who beat world No 1 Lindsay Davenport at Strasbourg last year - and Jidkova.

Jankovic, the fast riser on the WTA last year, climbing from 82 to 28, has a cold and has been granted a day off today.

Today's schedule

* All courts start 11am:

Court one: Q-M. Tu (US) v Q-S. Peer (Israel) (final qualifying), followed by 5-M. Bartoli (France) v A. Spears (US), followed by 1-A. Frazier (US) v L. Granville (US), followed by M. Sucha (Slovakia) v 7-M. Vento-Kabchi (Venezuela), followed by WC-L. Krasnoroutskaya (Russia) v A. Kapros (Hungary).

Court four: Q-J. Kirkland (US) v Q-Y. Yoshida (Japan) (final qualifying), followed by J. Craybas (US) v P. Mandula (Hungary), followed by T. Panova (Russia) v L. Lee-Waters (US), followed by M. Domachowska (Poland) v S. Perry (US), followed by 1-S. Asagoe (Japan)/K. Srebotnik (Slovenia) v J. Russell (US)/M. Santangelo (Italy) (first round doubles).

Court six: Q-A. Kerber (Germany) v Q-J. Husarova (Slovakia), followed by Q-A. Bachmann (Germany) v Q-M-E. Pelletier (Canada), followed by Su-Wei Hsieh (Taipei)/Y. Yoshida (Japan) v M. Erakovic (NZ)/C. Scheepers (South Africa) (final qualifying doubles), followed by N. Llagostera Vives (Spain/J. Talaja (Croatia) v A. Jidkova (Russia)/T. Perebiynis (Ukraine), followed by E. Dominikovic (Australia)/G. Voskoboeva (Russia) v K. Grant (South Africa)/ L. Osterloh (US) (first round doubles).