Melbourne, 1 February 2013 | tennis.com.au

Australia’s Olivia Rogowska (St. Kilda, Vic) and Sacha Jones (Melbourne, Vic) will headline the Launceston Tennis International (3-10 February 2013) next week when the tournament commences at the Launceston Regional Tennis Centre in Tasmania.

21-year-old Rogowska is looking to build some momentum as the new year unfolds. The Victorian had a breakthrough year in 2012, playing the main draw of two Grand Slams and winning through to the quarterfinals of a WTA tournament in Kuala Lumpur before reaching a career-high ranking of 108 in October.

Rogowska also recorded three ITF singles titles on the Pro Circuit as did Sacha Jones in 2012. Likewise Jones had a solid season last year reaching a career high of 150 before succumbing to injury in September.

Bojana Bobusic (South Perth, WA) and Arina Rodionova (Melbourne, Vic) will join these two in the main draw as willMonique Adamczak (Sydney, NSW), Viktorija Rajicic (Delahey, Vic), Lizette Cabrera (Townsville, Qld) and Priscilla Hon (Rochedale, Qld) after they were awarded wildcards.

Pro Circuit regulars including South Africa’s Chanel Simmonds will be the biggest international threat with the rest of the main draw set to feature sisters Yurika and Erika Sema (JPN) and a further six Japanese compatriots. Stephanie Vogt from Liechtenstein and Ana Savic from Croatia are also set to play in Launceston.

Jessica Moore (Williams, WA), Azra Hadzic (Keysborough, Vic), Tammi Patterson (Brighton, Vic), Karolina Wlodarczak (Glen Waverley, Vic) and Storm Sanders (Safety Bay, WA) are just some of the Australians down to contest qualifying in order to earn a spot in the field.

“It’s fantastic to have a group of top Australian and international athletes visit Launceston to compete. This will be the second time this tournament will be hosted at these world class facilities,” said Trent Constance, Tournament Director.

“The venue has really embraced the opportunity to host an international tennis event and we’re looking forward to delivering a successful tournament.

“We encourage the locals to come down and watch some quality tennis,” added Constance.

Qualifying will begin on Sunday before the main draw gets underway on Tuesday.