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WTA Auckland draw kind for Venus Williams

The top seed and current world number seven Venus Williams will round out the day session with her match against Daria Kasatkina.

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Or Li Na, who was second seed in 2010 and enjoyed a bungy jump and sightseeing in Auckland but didn’t seem to be interested in tennis, with a miserable 6-1, 6-3 first-round loss.

Bradnam said it was an awesome opportunity to smack the ball around with her heroes.

Broady, 25, was placed in the main draw of the WTA International event and will take on former world No 1 Ana Ivanovic in the first round.

The second seed will play qualifier Naomi Broady of Great Britain.

It was good for the crowd too – it was the most entertaining match of the day, as Ivanovic and Dutchwoman Kirsten Flipkens came back from a set down to beat the top seeds, Czech pair Lucie Hradecka and Andrea Hlavackova 4-6, 6-4, 10-3.

Her best showing in 2015 was a semifinal result in Quebec City. There will be nine singles Grand Slam titles on court tomorrow and three world number ones. Ivanovic will cruise through in straight sets.

The ASB Classic kicks off on Monday.

She turned professional in 1994, three years before the 75th-ranked Kasatkina was born.

Wozniacki hopes to go one better in the New Zealand tournament this year as she prepares for the Australian Open, and she is optimistic she can push on in 2016 after last season’s frustrations.

On the other side of the net is Kazakhstan’s Yulia Putintseva, who finished 2015 inside the top 100 for the first time in her career.

Prediction: The Kazakh is a short, diminutive player who has no major weapons but is consistent and quick around the court.

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“She has already had three matches under her belt”. “She has a big serve and a one-handed backhand”.

AFP  File  Michael Bradley Venus Williams seen in action during the women's singles final of the ASB Classic in Auckland