Fifth seed Jerzy Janowicz is hoping for some tennis revenge at the Auckland Open, but will have to make the final to have a chance of exacting it.
The giant 2.03m Pole also needs top seed and three-time Auckland winner David Ferrer of Spain to be on the other side of the net when the title is decided next Saturday.
Janowicz’s sharp rise in fortunes in 2012 – he went from a ranking of 220 to his present career-high 26 – was highlighted by his astonishing giant-killing run at the Paris Masters.
After having to qualify, the 22-year-old toppled five top-20 opponents, including US Open champion Andy Murray, to make the final, where Ferrer proved to be one hurdle too many.
“After Paris, I would love to have revenge against him,” Janowicz said.
“For sure he’s not an easy opponent. He’s one of the best players in the world.”
The Auckland tournament, which begins on Monday, will be Janowicz’s first event since Paris two months ago and he doesn’t have huge expectations.
“I hope I survive a few matches,” he said.
His first-round opponent will be American Brian Baker, who returned to the ATP tour last year after more than six seasons away with injury.
Ferrer, 30, is backing up from a successful 2012 during which he won more titles (seven, including Auckland) and more matches (76) than any other player on the tour.
The world No.5 opened the new season in Doha, where he fell in a surprise semi-final defeat to Russia’s Nikolay Davydenko.
Like the three other top-four seeds in Auckland – Germans Philipp Kohlschreiber (the 2008 champion) and Tommy Haas, and American Sam Querrey – Ferrer has a bye into the second round.
One of the feature matches of the opening round pits Brazilian eighth seed Thomaz Bellucci against up-and-comer David Goffin of Belgium.
Slovakia’s Martin Klizan, the No.7 seed and the ATP’s newcomer of the year after reaching a career-high ranking of 29, will face another Belgian in veteran Xavier Malisse.
Sixth-seeded Austrian Jurgen Melzer has drawn a qualifier, as has New Zealand wildcard entry Dan King-Turner.
