In the face of big-money tournaments in the Middle East and a Hopman Cup that has embarked on an bold recruiting spree, Brisbane International organisers remain content to spruik their event as the best lead-in to the Australian Open, not the biggest.
Happy with its emerging status as a boutique tournament to start the summer of tennis, Brisbane International director Steve Ayles said the departure of Belgian stars Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin - who played in a dream final in January - wouldn't dent its reputation as it rolls into its third year.
Clijsters, the defending champion, won't play at all in the first week of January and will begin her preparations for the opening Grand Slam of 2011 in Sydney. Henin, coming back from an elbow injury that has kept her sidelined since August, will return via the Hopman Cup in Perth.
The women's draw will instead be headlined by hometown hero Samantha Stosur, the world number six fresh off her best year on the WTA Tour and a finalist at the French Open. Former world number four Jelena Dokic has also been given wildcard status.
On the men's side, there's no Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal but Brisbane's hardcourt surface, identical to that of Melbourne Park, has enticed defending champion Andy Roddick, along with a host of quality men's contenders capped off by top seed and world number five Robin Soderling.
And for the first time, the umpires will be given a helping hand by the Hawk-Eye, which has been a noticeable absentee from previous events.
The battle for playing talent in January is fierce, with the Hopman Cup laying claim to a number of former Brisbane International headliners including Henin, Novak Djokovic and Ana Ivanovic.
Ayles said he wasn't concerned by the thin spread of top-line players, insisting Brisbane remained the best choice for players "serious" about a testing Grand Slam warm-up in similar conditions and time zones to that which will greet the challengers in Melbourne.
"Pretty much, the players that are really serious about the Australian Open and about performing well at the Australian Open, they're going to want to play in the conditions that are most similar," Ayles said.
"Here you play on the same surface, same balls, similar climate and time zone. Players like Roddick or (Fernando) Verdasco could make a lot more money playing in a different event. They've chosen this event purely for preparation.
"I think that's the one advantage we have over Hong Kong, Hopman, the Middle East."
It's a sensible piece of market positioning for Ayles and the Brisbane International management. The tournament is never likely to feature the huge purse of the $1.4 million men's event in Doha, where Federer and Nadal will compete, but a big Open campaign from someone like Roddick will only add weight to Ayles's sales pitch.
So too would a flying start to the year from Sam Stosur, who played in Brisbane in 2009 and departed in the second round. Her form is infinitely better and a local in the final would be the dream result for organisers.
Ayles believes Stosur's rise in the rankings has triggered a flow-on in women's tennis. Brisbane will feature four Australian women in the main draw, with Stosur joined by wildcard Jelena Dokic and rising stars Jarmila Groth and Anastasia Rodionova.
"I think women's tennis in Australia at the moment is the strongest it's been for a very long time. If you look at Sam, who's doing so well, it pulls the others up as well," Ayles said.
"Our Fed Cup team is playing unbelievable. They're in the world group playing the champions first round in Hobart. We're hitting the milestones we need to hit."
Dokic has used Brisbane as a springboard to a comeback before and will try again after her wildcard was granted. The 27-year-old has appeared in Brisbane since its inception and is trying to put an erratic and mistake-prone 2010 behind her.
"Jelena has been a wonderful competitor in the tournament in recent years and she is a crowd favourite in Brisbane," Ayles said.
"Jelena is a passionate player and will be a real surprise card in the draw. When she is playing well she is capable of beating anyone."
"She's been playing and she's been winning a lot of matches. She's training and she's looking forward to a great summer. We're just pleased that she's starting it here."
No Australian men have made it to the main men's draw, with any participants having to make it through final qualifying beginning on December 31. The main draw is in action from January 2.
Men's top seeds Robin Soderling (SWE), Andy Roddick (USA), Fernando Verdasco (ESP), Mardy Fish (USA), Marcos Baghdatis (CYP), Feliciano Lopez (ESP), Florian Mayer (GER), Denis Istomin (UZB), Marcel Granollers (ESP), Gilles Simon (FRA).
Women's top seeds Samantha Stosur (AUS), Shahar Peer (ISR), Nadia Petrova (RUS), Marion Bartoli (FRA), Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS), Flavia Pennetta (ITA), Alisa Kleybanova (RUS), Alexandra Dulgheru (ROU), Daniela Hantuchova (SVK), Dominika Cibulkova (SVK).
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