Playing it safe

Davenport pulls out of Sydney to rest ailing knee

SYDNEY (Reuters) -- World No. 1 Lindsay Davenport has withdrawn from the Sydney international tournament, the main warm-up event for the Australian Open, because of a knee injury, organizers said on Friday.

Sydney international tournament director Craig Watson said Davenport's knee injury, which caused her to pull out of the WTA Championship final against American Serena Williams in November in Munich, had not fully healed.

"It is obviously very disappointing to lose Lindsay," Watson said.

"She is a great player, a great personality, a lovely person to deal with and someone who is very popular with the fans."

Watson said although Davenport would miss the Jan. 6-12 Sydney event, the American was confident of being fit for the Australian Open -- the first Grand Slam of the year -- starting in Melbourne on January 14.

Davenport was a semifinalist at last year's Open and is a former Australian Open, Wimbledon and U.S. Open champion.

The 25-year-old American was runner-up to Martina Hingis in Sydney last year and won the event in 1999.

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