Tournament Preview: Adelaide 31 December 2005 - 8 January 2006

AUSTRALIAN TENNIS SEASON BEGINS

The sun is shining and another hot Australian Summer is upon us and, as 2006 gets underway, so does the tennis season, 
commencing with the Next Generation Adelaide International as part of the Road to the Australian Open. Despite last year's 
winner, Joachim Johansson of Sweden, being unable to defend his title due to injury, the tournament has attracted a strong 
field, led by hometown favourite, Lleyton Hewitt. While most eyes will be on the feisty Australian, other names of note 
will be world number 19, Dominik Hrbaty of the Slovak Republic; world number 20, Tommy Robredo of Spain; recent member of 
the winning Croatian Davis Cup team, Mario Ancic; rising Czech star, Tomas Berdych, who was  the surprise winner of the 
Paris Masters in November; and promising Brit, Andy Murray. Wild cards have also been awarded to Aussie veteran, Mark 
Philippoussis, who is looking to make a comeback on home soil in 2006 and fellow Australian, Carsten Ball, who won the 
Australian National 18s. 

Local hero, Hewitt, was bundled out of last year's tournament in a surprise loss to American Taylor Dent in the quarter 
finals. Ironically, it was his sister's boyfriend, Swede Joachim Johansson who triumphed in the final against Dent (whose 
father is the Australian, Phil Dent) 7-5 6-3. In 2006, Hewitt will be looking to make amends and claim his home tournament 
once again, after winning his first career title at Memorial Drive in 1998 at the tender age of 16. However, he will have 
fierce opposition from other top 20 players as well as underestimated newcomers like Berdych and Murray, to name a few.

Qualifying will start on Saturday 31 December 2005 and main draw action will get underway on Monday 2 January 2006. The 
tournament is held at the Memorial Drive complex and the official hotel is the Hyatt Regency Adelaide. Tickets have been 
on sale since October 2005 and may be purchased through Venuetix (http://www.venuetix.com.au/), phone 61 8 8225 888). An 
adult ticket for 2-4 January will cost AU$21, however there are various concession, season and family prices available. 
For more pricing information, visit http://www.tennisaustralia.com.au/pages/default.aspx?id=5878&pageId=8528. Monday 2 
January is Kids Day where children under 16 enter free with any paying adult or concession card holder. If you're planning 
a holiday in Australia to soak up some sun, check out Lonely Planet's guide to South Australia's capital 
(http://www.lonelyplanet.com/worldguide/destinations/pacific/australia/adelaide/)and kick start the 2006 season on the 
road to the Australian Open.

Tournament Fast Facts:
Venue: Memorial Drive, Adelaide, Australia
Dates: 31 December 2005 - 8 January 2006
Singles Qualifying: 32 draw 
Main Draw Singles: 32 
Main Draw Doubles: 16 
Surface: Outdoor Rebound Ace
Prize money: US $419 000
Tournament Director: Peter Johnston

Main Draw Entry List:
Hewitt, Lleyton AUS
Hrbaty, Dominik SVK 
Robredo, Tommy ESP 
Ancic, Mario CRO  
Blake, James USA 
Berdych, Tomas CZE 
Nieminen, Jarkko FIN  
Chela, Juan Ignacio ARG 
Mathieu, Paul-Henri FRA  
Malisse, Xavier BEL 
Serra, Florent FRA 
Martin, Alberto ESP  
Calleri, Agustin ARG  
Melzer, Jurgen AUT  
Beck, Karol SVK  
Carlsen, Kenneth DEN  
Murray, Andy GBR 
Goldstein, Paul USA  
Seppi, Andreas ITA  
Clement, Arnaud FRA  
Karlovic, Ivo CRO  
Mayer, Florian GER 
Hernych, Jan CZE  
Spadea, Vincent USA 
Pashanski, Boris SCG  
(WC) Philippoussis, Mark AUS
(WC) Ball, Carsten AUS
(WC) 
(Q) 
(Q) 
(Q) 
(Q) 

Alternates:
Horna, Luis PER  
Monaco, Juan ARG  
Kohlschreiber, Philipp GER 
Starace, Potito ITA  
Lisnard, Jean-Rene FRA 
Almagro, Nicolas ESP 
Gimelstob, Justin USA 
Ramirez Hidalgo, Ruben ESP  
Mazarakis, Vasilis GRE 
Greul, Simon GER  
Simon, Gilles FRA 
Di Mauro, Alessio ITA  
Sluiter, Raemon NED 
Berrer, Michael GER 
Udomchoke, Danai THA