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New Zealand's Marina Erakovic - Source: Photosport -
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New Zealand No.1 Marina Erakovic leaves her first tournament of the year in positive mood, despite early exits in the both the singles and doubles of the ASB Classic in Auckland.
Erakovic, 20, was unable to repeat her heroics of a year ago, when she made the singles semi-finals as a wildcard.
She fell in the second round on Wednesday to top-seeded Russian Elena Dementieva 6-2 6-3, having to battle abdominal and neck injuries along the way.
The defeat followed a first-round exit in the doubles, an event in which she and American partner Jill Craybas were the No.1 seeds.
But Erakovic said it good just to be playing again after the off-season break.
"It was good to get the feeling of the points and playing with the girls," she said.
"I definitely think it's a positive going on to Australia."
Erakovic needed an extended medical break for courtside treatment during the second set against Dementieva.
The abdominal problem was something she already had, but she woke up with the stiff neck on Wednesday.
She said the injuries, which hampered her serving, were unlikely to keep her out of next week's tournament in Hobart, her final build-up before the Australian Open.
"I don't think it's a major," she said.
"I think it just needs some rest and some treatment. I'm still looking to be playing everything I plan to be playing."
After her stirring run in the Classic last January, she had plenty of ranking points to defend this week.
So an early exit means her ranking will drop from its present 69, but not enough to threaten her entry in the main draw of the Australian Open.
Dementieva, the Olympic champion and a two-time Grand Slam finalist, said the time she spent waiting for Erakovic to get treatment hadn't proved a distraction for her.
"It's not my first year on the tour, so I was ready for it."
Her experience was the same reason she didn't take advantage of the new rule that allows players to call get limited courtside coaching during a match.
Dementieva said she hadn't needed to call her coach because she remembered his words of advice.
"Usually he tells me what to do before the match and we have a game plan," she said.
"It's up to me when I'm playing and I try to be focused and do the right thing."
Dementieva agreed that the new rule probably favoured the younger contingent on tour.
"It's a great idea for the young player who's playing in the first or second year to call her coach and have some advice in a difficult situation," she said.
"I think that's going to helpful."
