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Alicia Molik’s comeback to world tennis has been given a major boost with a wildcard entry into the main draw of next month’s Australian Open.
Open organisers on Thursday announced two women’s and three men’s wildcards for the first grand slam event of 2010.
Talented Melbourne teenager Olivia Rogowska was given the other women’s wildcard, leaving just one remaining.
Two-time junior grand slam winner Bernard Tomic, national under-18 champion Jason Kubler and Davis Cup player Carsten Ball grabbed three of the four remaining men’s wildcards.
Molik, a former Open quarter-finalist and world No.8, was the form player in the domestic Pro Tour, winning 37 of 40 matches before losing to Jessica Moore in the quarter-finals of the wildcard playoffs last week in Melbourne.
Rogowska has scaled the rankings this year and nearly beat top seed and then-world No.1 Dinara Safina at the US Open.
The top seed made the final of the wildcard playoff, losing in three sets to Casey Dellacqua.
Tomic added the US Open boys’ title to last year’s Australian Open junior crown and, at 17, held match points in an epic five-set final of the playoff before succumbing to countryman Nick Lindahl.
Ball made an ATP final this year in Los Angeles as a qualifier and, at 134th in the world, went close to making the main draw cut-off.
He has performed well in Davis Cup and only a back injury forced him to miss last week’s playoffs.
Kubler led Australia to the Junior Davis Cup title this year and is the top-ranked 16-year-old in the world after embarking on a 34-match winning streak during the season.
Tiley indicated a decision on the last wildcard in each of the men’s and women’s draws would be made as soon as possible.
In total, eight wildcards are given for each event.
As the grand slam of Asia Pacific, organisers award one to Asia, while one each are given to the United States and France under a reciprocal agreement with their respective grand slams.
Organisers have already granted former world No.1 Justine Henin of Belgium wildcard entry into the women’s draw.
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