 Nadia Petrova, who was set to be the number two seed, was forced to pull out when it was announced that she had contracted viral meningitis in mid-December.The return of Marina Erakovic (a New Zealander) to this event provoked a strong interest from media in the country.In the 2008 event, Erakovic had reached the semifinals, defeating the top seed Vera Zvonareva in the process.