Tennis: Ferrer, Gulbis and 'more to come' for Auckland

Regular visitor David Ferrer will again enthral Auckland tennis fans at the Heineken Open in January. Picture / NZME

Three of the world's top 15 represents a good early haul for the Heineken Open in January but tournament organisers hope to lure more of the game's best.

As well as the ever-present David Ferrer, the Auckland event yesterday announced the signing of world No 13 Ernests Gulbis.

Defending champion John Isner has already been confirmed.

And tournament director Karl Budge has pledged the recruitment work won't stop there, aiming to attract another two or three top-20 players.

"I'm pretty optimistic there's still some more to come," he said. "There's one in particular we've got up our sleeve that we'll look to make some noise about in the next couple of weeks.

"But we're still having a couple of other conversations as well. I'm optimistic we can see another two players in the top 20, if not pinch a third. That would just be unbelievable for us - if we could have five or six players in the top 20 it would make a pretty strong tournament."

Ferrer is certainly a solid start. An annual fixture in Auckland, the Spaniard has long established himself as the best of the bunch sitting outside the big four of men's tennis, a player who would likely be a multiple Grand Slam winner if born in another era.

His quality and reliability at Stanley St makes Ferrer a fan favourite and the feeling is mutual - although his agent isn't always as amenable.

"It's a tough one with David," Budge said. "There's no question that he loves this place and this is where he wants to start his year. So it's quite easy convincing David - his agent, on the other hand, is another story.

"David is the highest-ranked player in the world playing that week, but more importantly he's a player you can rely on. He's a guy that if he rolls an ankle, he's still going to go out and try to win that match. The week before a Grand Slam, there's not many players who are that way, so he's in demand."

Gulbis was another early-season tournaments were aiming to attract, as much for his off-court demeanour as his rapidly improving game.

Regarded as one of the more colourful personalities on tour, the 26-year-old has boasted about his racquet-throwing abilities and railed against "boring" interviews from the likes of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.

Opening haul for Heineken Open
• David Ferrer, Spain, World No 5.

• Ernests Gulbis, Latvia, World No 13.

• John Isner, United States, World No 15.