Wozniacki, Venus open 2015 in NZ

Wellington - Former top-ranked Caroline Wozniacki and Venus Williams will open their 2015 tennis seasons at the ASB Classic in Auckland from January 5.

The No. 1-ranked doubles combination of Roberta Vinci and Sara Errani will also start the new season at the hard court tournament in New Zealand. Errani is ranked No 14 in singles and is one of five top-30 players in the main singles draw for the traditional Australian Open leadup.

Wozniacki is currently ranked No 8 in singles and Williams, runner-up in Auckland last year, is 18th.

The 32 player main draw, confirmed on Wednesday, also includes two-time Grand Slam champion Svetlana Kuznetsova and 22-year-old American Coco Vandeweghe.