Sydney: US Open champion Juan Martin del Potro has been added to an elite warm-up event for next year's Australian Open after Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus pulled out.
Organisers of the annual Kooyong Classic in Melbourne from Jan. 13-16 offered the Argentine a place in the eight-man field after Baghdatis said he wanted to switch to the Sydney International, an official ATP event that carries ranking points.
"It is most unfortunate to lose Marcos from an already announced field, but I understand his situation," Kooyong Classic tournament director Colin Stubs told reporters on Thursday.
"This event was instigated to provide the world's top players with the best possible preparation for the Australian Open, but it will not always suit."
Novak Djokovic, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Fernando Verdasco, Fernando Gonzalez, Robin Soderling and Tommy Haas had already been invited to the tournament while organisers were keeping open a place for Roger Federer, who remains undecided.
Baghdatis, a finalist at the Australian Open in 2006, will join Serena Williams and Lleyton Hewitt as the headline acts in Sydney from Jan. 10-16.
Meanwhile, organisers of the Brisbane International said on Thursday that Frenchman Gilles Simon was joining Andy Roddick for their Jan. 3-10 event.
Bureau Report
First Published: Thursday, November 12, 2009, 12:53