Coria, Ferrero Make 2005 Debuts Heading ATP Auckland Field

Argentina's Guillermo Coria will attempt to put the memory of his injury-ridden 2004 season, which included two titles and near-misses in finals at the French Open (l. to Gaudio), Masters Series-Miami (l. to Roddick), MS-Hamburg (l. to Federer), and on grass at 's-Hertogenbosch (l. to Llodra) behind him this week at the ATP stop in Auckland.

Coria competed in only two events after Wimbledon last year, coming back for the year-ending Masters Cup where he was blanked 0-3 in round robin play.

"I realize that it is very tough to get over such a complicated injury," Coria told The New Zealand Herald of his shoulder surgery. "I am really keen to go back and try to be 100 percent physically first. At the beginning of Roland Garros I really felt I was up there. If you are talking No. 1, of course we all felt Federer was unbeatable last year, but I was playing well and my plans were to try and play as good as I could and maybe overtake Federer or Roddick or whoever was No. 1 in 2005."

Coria will try and end his four-match losing streak from 2004 at this year's Heineken Open, but it will not be an easy task in the opening round, drawn against smooth tour veteran and former Auckland champ Sjeng Schalken.

Joining Coria among the seeds in Auckland are Spaniard Tommy Robredo, defending champ Dominik "The Dominator" Hrbaty, resurgent American Vince "Vincenzo" Spadea, Chile's Fernando "Gonzo" Gonzalez, Argentine Juan Ignacio Chela, former No. 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero, and Peru's Luis "Me So" Horna.

"It's good to come back here, last time I was here I made the quarters and I played really good and after the last year I want to start very strong," said Ferrero, currently ranked outside the Top 30.

In addition to Coria's tough opener, look to first-round matches (8) Horna vs. the hot-handed Olivier "The Roach" Rochus, (3) Hrbaty vs. Rafael "The Prodigy" Nadal, (5) Gonzo vs. (WC) Blake, and (6) Chela vs. Spain's Guillermo "G-Lo" Garcia-Lopez, who stretched Carlos Moya to 7-6 in the third last week.

Other upset-minded competitors in the field are Frenchmen Cyril Saulnier and Julien "United Colors of" Benneteau, Argentine comer Juan "The Principality" Monaco, Robby "Baby Courier" Ginepri, Brazil's 2004 break-out player Ricardo Mello "Yello," and underrated Italian "You Say" Potito Starace.

Last year The Dominator edged The Prodigy 7-5 in the third for the title, one of three the fast-starting Slovak collected by February of 2004.

Former champions in the field are Hrbaty (2004,'01), Schalken (1999), and Jonas Bjorkman (1997).

Scheduled for Monday are Acasuso vs. Benneteau, Starace vs. (WC) Nielsen, (5) Gonzalez vs. (WC) Blake, (4) Spadea vs. D.Sanchez, Zabaleta vs. (WC) G.D. Jones, and Saulnier vs. Muller.